Comment by jazzypants

You're confused about the etymology. Homo Sapiens was coined in the 1800s. People have been saying "sapient" since the 1300s, and it is rooted from the Latin word "sapientem" which simply means "sensible; shrewd, knowing, discrete". Homo Sapiens just means "wise human", and we humbly bestowed the name upon ourselves.

https://www.etymonline.com/word/sapient

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human#Etymology_and_definition