Description: Homo sapiens Latin: wise man is the binomial nomenclature for the only extant human species. Homo is the human genus, which also includes Neanderthals and many other extinct species of hominin. H. sapiens is the only surviving species of the genus Homo. Modern humans are the subspecies Homo sapiens, which differentiates them from what has been argued to be their direct ancestor, Homo sapiens idaltu.