人為

• Reading: じんい
• Romaji: jin'i
• Kanji breakdown: 人 (jin) — person, human; 為 (i) — action, agency
• Pronunciation: /dʑiɲi/

Meaning

Human action; something artificial or man-made, as opposed to natural.

A noun or adjectival noun (人為的な) contrasting human intervention with natural processes (自然). 人為的 is widely used in environmental, scientific, and philosophical discourse to distinguish what arises from human activity versus what occurs on its own. 人為的ミス means 'human error'.

Examples

1. 気候変動は人為的な要因が大きいとされている。 Climate change is said to be largely caused by human factors.
2. 今回の事故は人為的なミスによって引き起こされた。 This accident was caused by human error.
3. 自然の回復力は、人為では代替できない。 Nature's ability to recover cannot be replaced by human intervention.

Usage Guide

Context: science, environment, law, philosophy

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

From 人 (person, human) and 為 (action, doing, for the sake of). The compound captures the idea of something brought about specifically through human agency.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: Adults

Social background: Educated