Since the earliest literature—and no doubt long before—wisdom has been a central concern for humans. This section presents information on the history of wisdom as it has been discussed in writing (other than the empirical research, which is discussed in another section).
To get the facts, click on the links to the left. These are all in progress, not by any means complete. The Bibliography badly needs to be disaggregated, and it continues to grow, daily.
As of March 2, 2009, the Bibliography is still in MSWord rather than pdf.
Profecto non solum hodie, sed semper raros ingeniosos, rarissimos sapientes fuisse nemo est qui dubitet, nisi qui nunquam oculos vel in etatem suam intenderit, vel ad antiqua reflexerit. Petrarch, Contra Medicum Quendam, II
—although we can hope for much better from the future.
Sunt viæ quæ putantur ab hominibus rectæ, quarum finis usque ad profundum inferni demergit.
--There are ways that people consider to be right, whose end plunges into the depths of hell.
Benedict of Nursia, Regula cap7 (and twice in the book of Proverbs)
Sicut sapientia sapor boni, ita malitia sapor mali dicitur. Clavus clavo expellitur: ita et prava bonis supervenientibus eliminantur. Guibertus de Novigento "In Verba Sapientiae".
Photo of sky from Finally Creative, Public Domain Image Gallery, http://finallycreative.com