four humors
[/fɔr ˈhjuːmərz/]
noun
os quatro humores
1. In medieval and ancient medicine, the four bodily liquids (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile) believed to determine physical and mental health and temperament
The theory of the four humors was central to medical practice for over a thousand years.
A teoria dos quatro humores foi central para a prática médica por mais de mil anos.
2. A historical medical framework used to explain disease, personality traits, and the balance of the body
Doctors in the Renaissance still relied on the four humors to diagnose illnesses.
Os médicos do Renascimento ainda confiavam nos quatro humores para diagnosticar doenças.
The four humors theory originated in ancient Greece with Hippocrates and was developed by Galen in Rome. It dominated Western and Islamic medicine for over 1,200 years until the development of modern scientific medicine in the 18th-19th centuries. Today it is studied primarily in medical history, history of science, and literature courses. The theory has also influenced language and culture, with terms like 'sanguine,' 'phlegmatic,' 'choleric,' and 'melancholic' still used to describe personality types.
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