In 1962, a group of smart people, tired of each other’s company, decided to form a club for people with IQs above 148 so that they could meet other smart people of whom they were not yet tired. Certain that the name Smart People’s Club would alienate the general public (whom they feared) they chose the name Mensa, which is Latin for table. The name was not intended to suggest their penchant for dinner parties, but rather to demonstrate that they all knew what the Latin word for table was.