From that “owner at owner” guy’s Tinder bio to your chemistry professor’s Twitter profile, you’ve seen the word sapiosexual thrown around almost everywhere. This new label is now gaining prominence and sparking debates.

Sapiosexuals claim to find one’s brain and intelligence more appealing and attractive than their physical features. They are stimulated and challenged by the way the other person thinks. Yes, at some level, everyone seeks an intellectual connection with their partner. But for sapiosexuals, intelligence is the first and a paramount factor that draws them to another person.  

The term first rose to prominence in 2014 when dating app OkCupid extended its list of sexual orientations and added sapiosexual as one. Since then, almost 9000 OkCupid users have identified as sapiosexuals, and the number seems to be increasing every day. Women are more likely to choose the label than men, and it is most common among users between the ages of 31 and 40. “I’m attracted to creative people, who can hold an interesting and intellectual conversation, and have a witty sense of humour”, says Noida girl Aparna Kaushik, who identifies as a sapiosexual.

 

In this era of meaningless hook-ups, defining oneself as a sapiosexual is also a political statement against this current status quo of superficiality, where looks are prized above everything else. But with increased popularity comes increased backlash: people aren’t entirely convinced that this new sexual preference should be labelled as a sexuality of its own. “Sapiosexual: I’m an entitled, classist, elitist rebranded as a lover of intellect!” comments one Facebook user on a Buzzfeed ‘are you a sapiosexual?’ personality quiz. “No,” commented another. “Wanting to be with someone who’s intelligent or educated, or just being attracted to intelligence, is not a sexual orientation. It’s called having personal preferences.“

But whether or not it’s classified as a sexuality, there’s no denying that its popularity is ever increasing. From technical engineers to school librarians, we literally live in a society built on intelligence, so this emerging form of sexual preference should not come as a surprise.

Love and let love.