Tabula Rasa
The idea that individuals are born without built-in mental content and that therefore all knowledge comes from experience or perception.
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Origin
Latin for “blank slate.” The concept traces to Aristotle, but its modern form comes from John Locke’s 1689 Essay Concerning Human Understanding, which argued that the mind begins empty and all knowledge comes from sensory experience. The idea profoundly shaped Enlightenment thought, education theory, and the nature-vs-nurture debate.
Updated February 22, 2026