The Book of Human Emotions is an encyclopaedia of feelings by cultural historian Tiffany Watt Smith, first published in 2015. Arranged from A to Z, it explores the history, language and culture of 154 emotions from around the world, from familiar ones such as anger and nostalgia to rare ones such as iktsuarpok and dépaysement. It shows how naming feelings precisely can help us understand them.
Last updated: 10 November 2026
Reading time: about 7 minutes
How we wrote this article: this article was written by Saj Ali. It summarises the book’s approach and links it to published research on naming and differentiating emotions, and every research claim links to its source.
The Book of Human Emotions in brief
- The book. The Book of Human Emotions by Tiffany Watt Smith (2015). The first edition has 154 entries; the publisher’s current paperback describes 156.
- The author. A cultural historian who has worked at the Centre for the History of the Emotions at Queen Mary University of London.
- The idea. Emotions are shaped by language, history and culture, and having more words for them enriches how we feel.
- Why it matters. Research links naming and finely distinguishing emotions with better emotional regulation.
- Try it. Each evening, name your strongest feeling as precisely as you can.
Contents
- About the Book
- The Big Idea: Emotions Have a History
- Standout Feelings From Around the World
- Why Naming Emotions Helps: The Research
- How to Build Your Emotional Vocabulary
- Who the Book Suits
- Related Reading
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Key Takeaways
- Explore More on Self Help Supermarket
- Sources
About the Book
Tiffany Watt Smith’s The Book of Human Emotions was first published in 2015, with the subtitle An Encyclopedia of Feeling from Anger to Wanderlust in the UK. The first edition gathered 154 emotions from around the world. Her UK publisher now describes the paperback as a collection of 156 feelings, “both rare and familiar”, each with its own story (Profile Books).
Each entry is a short essay that mixes history, literature, philosophy, science and personal reflection. Some entries are everyday feelings such as boredom, envy and hope. Others are words from other languages that capture feelings English has no single word for.
Watt Smith also gave a TED talk, “The history of human emotions”, in which she argues that the words we use for emotions affect how we feel, and that those words have changed over time (TED).
The Big Idea: Emotions Have a History
We often think emotions are universal and fixed. Watt Smith shows that feelings are also shaped by culture and time. Nostalgia, for example, was once described as a medical condition affecting homesick soldiers before it became the bittersweet longing we know today. Some feelings appear, fade or change meaning as societies change.
That does not make emotions less real. It means our emotional lives are richer and more flexible than we might assume, and that learning new words can help us notice feelings we already have but never named.
This idea sits at the heart of emotional intelligence, which begins with recognising and naming what you feel.
Standout Feelings From Around the World
The publisher highlights several entries, including iktsuarpok, dépaysement and basorexia (Profile Books). Here are those, plus a few other well-known emotion words from different languages that show how varied feelings can be.
| Word | Origin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Iktsuarpok | Inuit | The restless anticipation that makes you keep going outside to see if someone is coming |
| Dépaysement | French | The disorientation, often exciting, of being somewhere unfamiliar |
| Basorexia | Modern English coinage | A sudden urge to kiss someone |
| Schadenfreude | German | Pleasure at another person’s misfortune (the subject of Watt Smith’s later book) |
| Hygge | Danish | Cosy contentment and togetherness |
| Saudade | Portuguese | A deep, bittersweet longing for something or someone absent |
| Hiraeth | Welsh | A yearning for a home or past that may never have existed |
| Gezelligheid | Dutch | Warm, convivial togetherness |
| Mono no aware | Japanese | A gentle sadness at the passing of things |
| Toska | Russian | A spiritual anguish or longing, often without a specific cause |
Reading lists like this, people often recognise feelings they have had for years without having a name for them.
Why Naming Emotions Helps: The Research
Watt Smith’s book is cultural history, but its central point fits well with psychology research.
| Research finding | What it means |
|---|---|
| Putting feelings into words (affect labelling) reduced activity in the amygdala, a brain area involved in emotional reactions (Lieberman et al., 2007) | Naming a feeling can calm it |
| People who distinguish finely between emotions (high emotional differentiation or granularity) tend to regulate emotions more effectively (Kashdan, Barrett and McKnight, 2015) | A richer emotion vocabulary is a practical skill |
Psychologist Lisa Feldman Barrett calls this “emotional granularity”. Instead of just feeling “bad”, you might notice you feel disappointed, lonely, resentful or anxious, and each points to a different response.
How to Build Your Emotional Vocabulary
- Name it to tame it. When a strong feeling arrives, pause and name it in a word or two. Then try a more precise word.
- Keep a feelings journal. Each evening, write the day’s strongest emotion and what triggered it. Our journaling guide has prompts.
- Use an emotion wheel or list. Many free feelings wheels group emotions from broad (sad) to specific (lonely, disappointed, grief-stricken).
- Borrow words from other languages. If English lacks a word, use one that fits, such as hygge or saudade.
- Notice body signals. Tight chest, warm face, heavy limbs. Body awareness helps you name feelings sooner. Our page on nervous system regulation explains the link.
- Share the words. Talking about feelings precisely improves communication in relationships.
- Read one entry a day. The book’s A to Z format suits a daily dip.
Who the Book Suits
- Curious readers who enjoy history, language and ideas
- Anyone working on emotional awareness or emotional intelligence
- Writers looking for precise emotional language
- Therapists, coaches and teachers who want fresh ways to talk about feelings
- People who find it hard to describe how they feel, including those exploring emotional repression
It is not a self-help manual with steps, but many readers find it quietly therapeutic. Pair it with practical tools such as mindfulness or self-compassion.
Related Reading
Watt Smith followed this book with Schadenfreude: The Joy of Another’s Misfortune (2018) and Bad Sports (2024). If you enjoy books that mix ideas with personal growth, see our list of the best self-help books.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Book of Human Emotions about?
It is an A to Z encyclopaedia of feelings from around the world, exploring the history, language and culture of each emotion.
How many emotions are in The Book of Human Emotions?
The first edition (2015) has 154 entries. The publisher’s current paperback describes 156 feelings.
Who wrote The Book of Human Emotions?
Tiffany Watt Smith, a cultural historian who has worked at the Centre for the History of the Emotions at Queen Mary University of London.
What is iktsuarpok?
An Inuit word for the restless anticipation that makes you keep going outside to see if someone is arriving.
Why does naming emotions help?
Research shows that putting feelings into words can reduce emotional reactivity, and that people who distinguish finely between emotions tend to regulate them better.
What is emotional granularity?
The ability to tell apart similar emotions precisely, such as disappointed versus lonely, rather than just feeling ‘bad’.
Is The Book of Human Emotions a self-help book?
It is cultural history rather than a step-by-step guide, but many readers use it to build emotional awareness.
Did Tiffany Watt Smith give a TED talk?
Yes. Her TED talk ‘The history of human emotions’ explores how the words we use for feelings shape how we feel.
Key Takeaways
- The Book of Human Emotions (2015) explores 154 feelings from around the world, from A to Z.
- Tiffany Watt Smith shows that emotions are shaped by language, history and culture.
- Words like iktsuarpok and dépaysement name feelings English lacks.
- Research links naming and differentiating emotions with better regulation.
- Build your vocabulary with a feelings journal, emotion wheels and borrowed words.
- Pair the book with emotional intelligence, mindfulness and self-compassion practices.
Explore More on Self Help Supermarket
Use these pages alongside this one:
- Emotional Intelligence – recognising and managing feelings
- Journaling for Mental Health – prompts for naming emotions
- Emotional Repression – when feelings are hard to reach
- Self-Compassion – kindness towards difficult feelings
- Mindfulness – noticing feelings as they arise
- Best Self-Help Books – more reading
- Browse all self-help techniques – compare every method on Self Help Supermarket.
Sources
- Watt Smith, T. (2015). The Book of Human Emotions: An Encyclopedia of Feeling from Anger to Wanderlust. London: Profile Books.
- Profile Books. The Book of Human Emotions. https://profilebooks.com/work/the-book-of-human-emotions/
- TED. Tiffany Watt Smith: The history of human emotions. https://www.ted.com/talks/tiffany_watt_smith_the_history_of_human_emotions
- Lieberman, M. D., et al. (2007). Putting feelings into words: Affect labeling disrupts amygdala activity in response to affective stimuli. Psychological Science, 18(5), 421–428. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01916.x
- Kashdan, T. B., Barrett, L. F., and McKnight, P. E. (2015). Unpacking emotion differentiation: Transforming unpleasant experience by perceiving distinctions in negativity. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 24(1), 10–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721414550708
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