Agnosia
/æɡˈnoʊ.zi.ə/noun
A neurological condition in which a person cannot recognize or identify objects, people, sounds, or smells despite having functioning senses.
Did you know?Agnosia comes from Greek a- meaning “without” plus gnōsis, “knowledge,” the same sacred root that later fed words like diagnosis and gnosis—so the term literally marks a break in recognition itself.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
agnōsia
“ignorance or lack of knowledge”
Late 19th Century
German
Agnosie
“a medical term for inability to recognize objects or sensations”
Early 20th Century
French
agnosie
“neurological inability to recognize”
Modern English
English
agnosia
“loss or impairment of the ability to recognize familiar objects or people”