stultitia
Stultitia is the Latin noun for folly or foolishness, derived from stultus “foolish.” The term denotes a state or quality of lacking good sense, judgment, or prudence, and is commonly contrasted with prudentia (prudence) and virtus (virtue). In classical literature, stultitia is treated as a vice arising from credulity, misjudgment, or ignorance of the true good. Philosophers and satirists used the concept to discuss errors in reasoning, moral weakness, or the consequences of imprudence in public and private life.
Historically, stultitia was often personified in allegory and emblematic literature as a figure representing foolishness. In
In modern scholarship, the term is primarily encountered in studies of Latin language, rhetoric, and moral psychology.