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The disorder called schizophrenia has probably been around as long as humans have. But it has taken humans a very long time to understand it. Even today, there is a lot we don’t know for sure. “Madness” in History Long ago, all types of mental disorders were lumped together as “madness” or “insanity.” People believed that madness was a punishment from the gods. Some people thought that the person’s mind had been taken over by a demon. For example, the Bible refers to an “evil spirit” that takes over the mind of Saul. Most people viewed insanity as a curse. They thought a “mad” person must be bad or broken in some way. Some towns kept mentally ill people in a special building called the

A stained glass window in a cathedral in Brussels shows the Biblical figure Saul, later known as Saint Paul.