voluntas

Voluntas is the Latin noun for will, wish, or volition. In philosophy, theology, and law, it refers to the rational faculty by which agents make choices and form intentional actions. The term derives from the Latin verb velle, “to wish,” and it denotes the will as a distinct aspect of the soul, typically contrasted with intellect, sensation, and appetite.

In ancient and medieval philosophy, voluntas is treated as the rational appetite that moves a person toward the good as apprehended by the intellect. It is central to discussions of freedom, responsibility, and moral action. In Christian scholasticism, voluntas is one of the powers of the rational soul; debates concern how the will is moved by grace and how it acts with freedom. Notable discussions occur in Augustine, who links the ordering of volition to moral accountability, and in Thomas Aquinas, who describes the will as a rational appetite oriented toward the good and capable of libertas (freedom) with assistance from divine grace.

Today, the Latin term is mainly encountered in historical, theological, and scholastic writings; in modern philosophy and psychology, English terms such as will and volition are more common. The concept underlies discussions of free will, volitional action, and agency. In theology, voluntas can appear in discussions of voluntarism, the view that human free will plays a decisive role in divine action or salvation. While less common in everyday language, voluntas remains a key historical designation for the study of voluntary action.