Aliens? Extraterrestrials? Star Families?
Words matter in how we talk about this phenomenon that surrounds us. So what do we call these strange visitors?
As a writer, I try to choose my words carefully so as to be precise, concise, and understood. In many cases, I am also selecting words to be objective and avoiding loaded words that can trigger people or set people down a narrow ideological path. So when I decided I was going to start publicly writing about potential non-human civilizations that dwell in or originate from other dimensions, planets, or galaxies, I faced the challenge of what word or words to use to say what I mean. Because they don’t come with name tags or license plates, we must typically default to generic labels like alien.
We probably shouldn’t worry about offending these beings. My guess is that they will cut us some slack if we get their names wrong or use a term that doesn’t translate well. My care in how I talk about such civilizations is based on the politics and psychology of the words we use. Writer Chris Hazell says, “The words we use — and how we use them — matter immensely because they shape the way we perceive the world and participate within it.”
We see evidence of this in the rebranding of UFO to UAP. Language can be used to shift public opinion (and drive agendas).
As discussed in identity politics, how we refer to people different from ourselves can reinforce cultural biases and contribute to prejudice. If we want the general public to be more objective and curious about other species living or visiting here, we should think about the vocabulary we use to talk about them, beginning with what we call them. The trouble is we are trying to define and label something that we don’t understand and is likely very diverse.
Here are some of the pros and cons of common terms used to discuss the beings behind “the phenomenon.” At the end, I’ll propose my term of choice.
Alien
When something is alien to us, we are essentially classifying it as foreign or strange. It is the other, which can often lead to prejudice. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines an alien as:
a person who is not of a particular group or place
extraterrestrial
exotic
Certainly, when used in an appropriate context, everyone knows what you mean when you say “alien.” Thus, it has the advantage of concisely conveying a concept and being generally understood. I used it myself in a recent article on this topic for purposes of simplicity and search engine optimization. The issue is that many people have formulated opinions or judgments around that word, which can also carry emotions. For some, the mention of alien will cause the listener to question the sanity and social suitability of the person uttering it, resulting in dismissal or ridicule of what the person has to say. For others, the word alien triggers the iconic image of the Greys, which can instill fear based on associations with abductions and inhibit open discussion.
Additionally, while alien may be concise, one could argue it is not particularly precise. It basically just means someone or something not from here. Not only is that a very broad brush, but it presumes that all of these beings are arriving from somewhere other than Earth. The truth is we don’t know where they are from. Some say that there are civilizations living within the Earth or others that reside here but are beyond our human perception. Are beings really alien if they too call Earth home?
Thanks to scary and silly Hollywood movies and decades of disrespect from major media outlets, I argue that alien carries too much baggage. Even in the human realm, the trend is to move away from using that word to describe undocumented immigrants because it is viewed as derogatory and reinforcing of racism and xenophobia. Is that really the legacy and attitude we want to bring to first contact? Surely we can do better than that.
For similar reasons, the term non-human beings or civilizations feels a bit anthropocentric. There is us and then everything that is not us. Using such a term, while reasonably clear when talking about other intelligences, could foster separatism.
Extraterrestrial
This word seems like it would be fairly straight-forward for people who actually know what it means but there is some nuance that could lead to confusion. Extra means outside or beyond. Historically, terrestrial referred to the Earth, but other meanings include:
of or relating to land as distinct from air or water
belonging to the class of planets that are like the Earth (as in density and silicate composition)
Taken together, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “extraterrestrial” as “originating, existing, or occurring outside the Earth or its atmosphere” when used as an adjective and “a being from another world” when used as a noun, where world may be assumed to be a land-based planet. In theory, someone could interpret extraterrestrial to mean someone from planets similar to Earth, which science deems Mercury, Venus, and Mars to be, but that is probably unlikely and likely splitting hairs. Plus, we have words to denote being from or characteristic of those planets, like Venusian and Martian, should the distinction become meaningful.
Extraterrestrial may be an accurate term for a large portion of those flying around our planet in spaceships. Like alien, it may not be technically correct for all beings we might encounter, particularly any that exist here. However, it feels like a more neutral term than alien, though it also emphasizes the “not from here” element, potentially setting up that us vs. them dichotomy. The main drawback I see is that it is often used to describe anything that doesn’t originate from Earth, be that meteor, mineral, or Mantid being with long green arms. Because of that, the term may sometimes require clarification, which isn’t ideal. It is also a bit of a mouthful when not abbreviated.
Star People / Star Nation / Star Family
This group of terms is most prominently used in Native American circles and among those with positive views of open contact to denote beings from the skies that visited long ago to share wisdom with our earthly ancestors. If we take the term literally, it means beings originating from the stars. Typically, this refers to known star systems like the Pleiades, Arcturus, Lyra, and Sirius. While the connotation may be uplifting, the fact that it comes with an association — positive or negative — means it comes with an agenda.
Another issue with star family and similar terms is that most people won’t know what you are talking about. People from the stars? A family of movie stars like the Hemsworths or Baldwins? Even for those who do get it, it may suffice as a generic term for beings from various star systems, but that excludes any beings from other planets (including ours). Thus, this term is ambiguous while also being fairly narrow, making it unsuitable as an overarching classification. Using stellar, as in stellar civilizations, carries the same issue, as it is essentially a synonym for star.
Galactics or Galactic Civilization
I admit that I just like the word galactic. Merriam-Webster defines it as, “of or relating to a galaxy and especially the Milky Way galaxy.” Aside from having a nice ring to it, advantages of this term are that most people know what it means or at least appropriately associate it with space and it is inclusive, such that it could cover all beings existing in this galaxy, including us. After all, we would be a galactic civilization to someone living on Mars. Where we need to specify beings from other galaxies, we could potentially use intergalactic to describe them. There is also some precedent for using the term galactic, like the so-called Galactic Federation, which believers say refers to an alliance between various civilizations assisting or at least monitoring humanity.
The main disadvantage is that it may require concerted and consistent effort to establish it as the dominant term and signify the intended concept to people hearing the word. The same is true with cosmics or cosmic civilizations. Both are neutral and inclusive (though potentially overly broad) but perhaps not immediately clear to most people.
The Winner Is…
Perhaps there will come a time when we can simply ask the beings showing up here what they would like to be called. Maybe there will even be a time when they are simply friends, neighbors, or colleagues, when we think of them more as people and individuals instead of needing to broadly classify them as other. But until then, we should adopt a vocabulary that is neutral, inclusive, and constructive.
No one word can sufficiently capture the full diversity and complexity of non-human intelligent life, let alone all of the forms of consciousness in existence. But what galactics or galactic civilizations attempt to convey is objectivity, expansiveness, and reasonable clarity. It does not set up an adversarial relationship or come with a lot of preconceived notions. It leaves open the possibility that we are part of a vast network of galactic civilizations coming into awareness of each other.
That’s my choice, at least for now. What’s yours? Please leave your answer in our comment section.
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