The renowned science of pedology, which commenced in the nineteenth century as a study of natural processes in soil formation, is adapting to the demands of the Anthropocene, the geologic period during which planet Earth and its soils change from natural to humannatural systems. The term Anthropocene comes from the Greek words anthropos, which means "man," and cene, which means "new." Within the Geological Time Scale, the 'Anthropocene' is not yet a formally recognised geological unit. The Anthropocene Working Group (AWG) is working on a proposal to codify the word for discussion. Anthropedogenic processes are characterised as artificial settings that dramatically alter natural soil formation processes or causes. In any given setting, human actions alter one or more of the five soil-forming factors. Given that humans differ from other organisms in that they purposefully manage soils independently of other soil-forming variables, and because they employ technology to affect soils on a far larger scale than other organisms. Humans' collective impacts on soil development have been categorised as a sixth soil-forming component. The basic science of pedology, the study of natural soil formation, is evolving into the science of anthropedogenesis in the Anthropocene. The future of pedology is a resurgent discipline known as anthropedology, which draws on previous pedology but moves from "human as outsider" to "human as insider." In other words, in pedology, the human must transform from a soil-disturbing to a soil-forming agent.