History Main / HumanSubspecies

* ''WesternAnimation/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil'': Star Butterfly, and the other "[[AmbiguouslyHuman human]]" inhabitants of Mewni are a human subspecies known as "[[HumanAlien Mewmans]]".
* ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'': There are three human subspecies in the form of: Metahumans (Homo Meta), humans that have the power to use magic (Homo Magi), and Atlanteans (Homo Mermanus).

* James Byron Huggins' ''Hunter'' features one of these as the main villain. The "beast-man", twice referred to as ''Homo scimitar'' but otherwise unnamed, is an extremely aggressive and almost invincible MonstrousHumanoid with outright superhuman abilities -- the strength to kill a rhino bare-handed, virtually bulletproof skin, total immunity to disease, and a lifespan speculated to be almost a thousand years. They started out as a predatory human species that steadily augmented their already-superhuman strength and aggression with a special flower until they became the monsters seen in the book. They're extinct in the present day, but one of the scientists secretly researching their genetics [[WasOnceAMan turned himself into one]] by injecting himself with their DNA.

* In Creator/CordwainerSmith's ''The Instrumentality of Mankind'', to survive on alien worlds, some humans have been so modified that they look more alien than human. {{Inverted|Trope}} with the Underpeople, who are animals modified to act and look human.

* In ''Magic Time'' (an UrbanFantasy trilogy by Marc Scott Zicree), when TheMagicCameBack, humanity was also affected, and numerous people were altered into the ethereal fairylike "Flares" and the strong but physically twisted [[TheMorlocks "Grunters"]] based on their personalities. One especially greedy corporate head even became a dragon.

* In Creator/StephenBaxter's ''Manifold'' series, humanity's predecessors and subspecies are a recurring theme:

** The Ibbenese from the remote island of Ibben are the most obvious example, who are described as being squat in stature with broad shoulders, sloping and ridged brows with sunken eyes, wiry hair and massive jaws. Offspring between Ibbenese and people of other lands frequently result in stillbirths and "monstrosities" while the surviving half-breeds are always sterile. Most of these descriptions seem to suggest the Ibbenese are in fact the equivalent of our world's Neanderthals, a small population of whom seem to have survived through cultural and geographic isolation.

* ''Literature/{{Taltos|AnneRice}}'' have common ancestors with humanity (they're primates) and even can interbreed with humans and pass as one but aren't humans. According with the books they were known as the ancient Picts.

** While Tolkien never settled on a canon origin for the [[OurOrcsAreDifferent Orcs]], it's generally thought that they're a corrupted breed of either Elves or Men, so in either case they'd also be an example of this trope. This is further supported by the existence of the [[HalfHumanHybrid Uruk-hai]], which implies that Orcs can be bred with Men.

* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'': The four races of Men in Tamriel are all different enough to have unique racial abilities and innate proficiency in certain skills. Three (the [[HornyVikings Nords]], [[HumansAreDiplomats Imperials]], and [[MageSpecies Bretons]]) all share a common ancestor in the [[{{Precursors}} Nedes]], one of the indigenous human tribes (or a collective name for those tribes) of Tamriel. Additionally, the races of Men and [[OurElvesAreDifferent Mer (Elves)]] also share a common ancestor even further back in history known as the Ehlnofey. Each race of Men and Mer can interbreed and produce viable offspring, which [[UnreliableNarrator (supposedly)]] [[UnevenHybrid almost entirely takes after the mother]], averting AllGenesAreCodominant.

* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'':

** Before discovering the truth, visitors from offworld speculate on if the furfaces are humanlike aliens or a subspecies. They don't believe enough time has passed for the people of a LostColony to evolve fewer fingers and faces with muzzles.

* ''Literature/TheShipWho'': The Kolnarians, who descend from a penal colony established on a Main/DeathWorld.

* ''Literature/TheLongEarth'': The Next, who are essentially natural versions of [[Franchise/StarTrek Khan]]. They have their origin in the stepwise town Happy Landings, where human/troll interactions led to some unusual evolutionary pressures, resulting in children with a very different brain structure. They are much smarter than regular humans and many of them are more sensible as well (Lobsang originally categorized their emergence on Datum Earth as being an unprecedented outbreak of common sense). They do, however, see themselves as fundamentally ''better'' than "[[FantasticSlurs dim-bulbs]]" and this disdainful attitude combined with intelligence leads toward a trend to charismatic sociopathy. Going further back in history: "trolls", "kobolds", and "elves" all share ancestors with humans, but they branched off at various points when ''their'' ancestors 'stepped' out into the Long Earth and generally never came back -- "Datum" humans are the descendants of those that never left.

** In ''Literature/ManifoldSpace'', the universe is full of intelligence. When the Gaijin MechanicalLifeforms purchase strips of wilderness on Earth, they begin experimenting with human and proto-human DNA. When human civilization on Earth collapses, a number of subspecies crop up; cro-magnons and neanderthals crop up in Africa, the latter of which operate a natural nuclear reactor and are used by the Gaijin to [[spoiler: maintain a superconducting loop on Io to generate fuel for a starship]].
** In ''Literature/ManifoldOrigin'', the Red Moon travels from universe to universe, scooping up hominids from Earth and moving them across the universes. On the Moon itself, ''Homo erectus'', ''Australopithecus'', neanderthals and ''Homo sapiens'' coexist. The Red Moon was created by [[spoiler:the Downstreamers from ''Manifold Time'' to enhance human evolution and give them a fellow intelligent species]].

* In "Literature/MimsyWereTheBorogoves", a scientist from millions of years in the future sends an anatomical doll (among other things) back in time to 20th century Earth. The doll shows that future humans have [[BizarreHumanBiology significant biological differences]] from their 20th century ancestors.

* ''Literature/Overlord2012'': The traditional "human" race of YGGDRASIL are not Homo Sapiens. In-game, the category of human even includes the likes of elves and dwarves. This is in contrast to the categories of demi-human (orcs, beastmen) and actual monsters (99% of the Tomb of Nazarick, but notably excluding Mare, Aura, and Aureole Omega).

** In the pre-Crisis continuity, ancient humans had interbred with a naturally-magical sub-species called ''Homo Magi'', and this is the origin of any ability to wield magic safely instead of having to bargain for it from a supernatural patron. Since the ability to wield magic this way comes from a complex of genes that are recessive in normal humans, it manifests only rarely. In theory any human being can learn how to wield ritual magic and magic that comes from invoking an eldritch god or similar supernatural force, but that sort of magic is incredibly dangerous. This is what differentiates ComicBook/{{Zatanna}} and her innate magical power from ritual spell-casters such as Felix Faust who must wrangle their power from supernatural sources.

** In the pre-Crisis continuity, ancient humans had interbred with a naturally-magical sub-species called ''Homo Magi'', and this is the origin of any ability to wield magic safely instead of having to bargain for it from a supernatural patron. Since the ability to wield magic this way comes from a complex of genes that are recessive in normal humans, it manifests only rarely. In theory any human being can learn how to wield ritual magic and magic that comes from invoking an eldritch god or similar supernatural force, but that sort of magic is incredibly dangerous. This is what differentiates ComicBook/{{Zatanna}} and her innate magical power from ritual spell-casters such as Felix Faust who must wrangle their power from supernatural sources. DC Comics does have Metahumans too, which are Humans that have been modified through scientific or non-scientific means, such as evolutionary processing, genetic experimentation, birth, training to gain powers, wish granting, enchantment, blessing, etc without their physiologies being altered. Superhumans mainly use superpowers, whereas Homo Magi mainly use magic, though they are both based on modification, unlike mutation, where a being goes through physical transformation and deformation. However, there does exist Metahuman-Homo Magi hybrids as well, yet Jinx, Artemis, Blackbriar Thorn/Druid, Charlotte Gage-Radcliffe/Misfit, Deborah, Giovanni Zatara, and June Moone/Enchantress are good examples of this, as they use both magical and regular superpowers.

* "Literature/{{Amina}}" deserves mention for the rational approach it takes toward Amina's race, the [[OurGhoulsAreCreepier "Free-people"]]. They appear to be a variant human or at least hominid species, with certain modifications, most notably sharper teeth and fingernails, a tendency toward litters, and the greater number of teats that logically follow from that. Unlike Creator/HPLovecraft's Ghouls, they don't seem to have any magical or psychic abilities. This is startlingly modern for Edwardian Era weird fiction.

* In ''Fanfic/TheBridge'' and the associated Amalgam'Verse, fae are magical sub-species of mundane races, including humans. Sadly, due to the events of the Extinction Hour, magic is greatly degraded and only a few are left.

* ''WebOriginal/OrionsArm'': Something like 80% of life (at least within the Terragen Sphere) is descended from humanity, but intentional modifications have caused so much divergence that two human descended terragens can be less alike than a human and a tree.

** The [[CloneArmy Grineer]] are a race of clones created to be slaves for the [[AbusivePrecursors Orokin]] [[GoldenAge thousands of years prior]]. Universally sterile, the Grineer rely on [[LostTechnology ancient cloning techniques]] to replenish their numbers, which only further damages their genome as genetic errors are propagated generation after generation; this has forced them to make heavy use of [[HollywoodCyborg cybernetic augmentations]] to repair their failing bodies, to the point where many of them look entirely inhuman, being little more than decaying organic heads mounted in mechanical harnesses. They see themselves as somewhat "apart" from the more conventional human beings inhabiting the planets of the solar system, their differences driving both an inferiority complex and a deep racial hatred of non-Grineer.

* The barbarians in ''VideoGame/KingsRaid'' are considered to be their own species, separate from humans. The males are characterized by their hulking builds, imposing height, and their SuperStrength. While females, such as Yanne, possess a slender build, but are considerably taller and have more muscle density compared to an average human female.

* The barbarians in ''VideoGame/KingsRaid'' is considered to be their own species, separate from humans, characterized by their hulking builds and height and their SuperStrength. While Yanne, a female barbarian, has a slender build, she is considerably taller and possess more muscle density compared to an average human female.

** First, Mutants, who have the X-Gene. They're pretty self-explanatory and as per canon, and once a set of powers has been developed, it's usually inherited (presumably on the grounds that it 'works'). However, sometimes power sets mix if two different mutants have children, as seen with the grandchildren of Alexander Summers and [[spoiler: Emma Frost]] - [[spoiler: Gambit, Scott's clone, can psychically control his energy charging powers with some very fine manipulation, and Scott is implied to have a latent variant on Emma's diamond form]]. It's also not uncommon to get a MuggleBornOfMages, and sometimes, as seen with Quicksilver, you get someone who has powers apparently unrelated to their mutant parent's.

** Eternals and Deviants a.k.a. the Forever People and the Changing People (neither have been seen yet, but both have been mentioned). Both were created by Celestial manipulation; the Eternals have ResurrectiveImmortality (though WordOfGod has it that it ''is'' possible to finally kill an Eternal - just really difficult) and ComboPlatterPowers, and they don't change. The Deviants are adaptive, and like mutants dialled up to eleven, meaning that their changes are often random and maladaptive. It's hinted that the energies of Yggdrasil that contributed to humanity's magical sensitivity and ability to crossbreed with so many species put the Deviants into overdrive.

** The sequel, ''Ghosts of the Past'', also makes mention of ComicBook/TheInhumans, and reveals that [[TheFairFolk the Fae]] were originally human (or at least a closely related species) which migrated to the [[EldritchLocation Nevernever]] hundreds of thousands of years ago and adapted to thrive there as living archetypes. In ''The Phoenix and the Serpent'', it is further revealed that the Forest People ([[BigfootSasquatchAndYeti Bigfoot]]. Smart, very LongLived, very powerful Bigfoot) similarly migrated, but noticed that they were being altered too, and went back to the mortal world. As a result, they're halfway to Faerie.
** It's also later established that the [[Series/StargateSG1 Jaffa]] exist, though in this universe they were, like the Inhumans, created by the Kree as a warrior caste.
** Finally, it's worth mentioning that the subspecies can crossbreed, or even happen spontaneously, in the case of magical-mutant hybrids (Illyana Rasputina a.k.a. Magik is a natural born example). They're mentioned as rare, but not unknown (and usually, insanely powerful).

* ''Literature/{{Gosick}}'': The Gray Wolves are [[ShorterMeansSmarter petite]], have long blonde hair, green eyes and SuperIntelligence. As they're cross-fertile with baselines but not completely [[HiddenElfVillage hidden from the outside world]], the women really shouldn't wander off. [[spoiler:[[BreakTheCutie Not that Cordelia Gallo had a choice]].]]

* ''Literature/Overlord2012'': The traditional "human" race of YGGDRASIL are not Homo Sapiens. In-game, the category of human even includes the likes of elves and dwarves. This is in contrast to the categories of demi-human (orcs, beastmen) and actual monsters (99% of the Tomb of Nazarick, but notably excluding Mare, Aura, and Aureole Omega).

* ''Literature/{{Taltos}}'' have common ancestors with humanity (they're primates) and even can interbreed with humans and pass as one but aren't humans. According with the books they were known as the ancient Picts.