Humour or humor is
the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and
provide amusement.
Many theories exist about what humour is and what social
function it serves. People of most ages and cultures respond
to humour. The majority of people are able to be amused, to
laugh or smile at something funny, and thus they are
considered to have a "sense of humour."
The term derives from the humoral
medicine of the ancient
Greeks, which stated that a mix of fluids known as humours
(Greek: χυμός, chymos,
literally juiceor sap;
metaphorically, flavour)
controlled human health and emotion.
A sense of
humour is the
ability to experience humour, although the extent to which an
individual will find something humorous depends on a host of variables,
including geographical
location, culture, maturity,
level of education, intelligence,
and context.
For example, young children may possibly favour slapstick,
such as Punch
and Judy puppet
shows or cartoons (e.g., Tom
and Jerry). Satire may
rely more on understanding the target of the humour, and thus
tends to appeal to more mature audiences. Nonsatirical humour
can be specifically termed "recreational drollery."
