Objective. The objective of the article is an analysis of the socio-philosophical basics of the concept of «intellectuals» as a social component for defining the essence and per- spectives in social discourse for determining the components and structural elements of the concept. Methods. The study of the concept of intellectuals, its essence, elements, components and features, the study of the etymology of the concept requires the use of the following methods: to study the origin of the term «intellectuals» an analytical method is applied; in the process of analysis of the origin of theories and sources of origin of the concept — the meth- od of comparison, in questions related to interpret the views of thinkers of the era of German classical philosophy the historical method is used; analyzing the components of the concept of intelligence and exploring different aspects of its application and use the structural approach is applied; system approach is involved in the consideration of intelligence in terms of social processes and interactions in the study of the social importance of this concept. Results. The historical order of origin, formation and translation of the concept of «intellectuals» is determined, the German classical philosophy is investigated as a source of the concept of «intellectuals», the main components that define the structure of the intellec- tuals, the specific systemic aspects of the concept of «intelligence» are determined. For the first time, the role of the intelectuals in the social and philosophical aspect has been clarified through the prism of the achievements of German classical philosophy. In modern scientific discourse the question of the concept, origin, nature and specificity of the term «intellectuals» is controversial. There is no unambiguous definition of the term itself, there are different perspectives on the period and place of occurrence of this concept, the question of the modern existence of such a layer of society as the intellectuals also remains open. Given the current social trends, we note the diversity of social processes, but it is intelligence is the factor, the study of which can answer many other questions about determining the social essence of being human. The following researchers are interested in intellectuals in their scientific studies: I. Dmitrenko, V. Kulik, P. Boborikin, M. Dobruskin and many others. Thus, Dmitrenko I. believes that the intellectuals as a social stratum took place exclusively in the Soviet period; Kulik is specialized in humanitarian and technical intellectuals; Boborikin P. explores with the help of literature the image of the intellectual; Dobruskin M. presents a socio-phil- osophical analysis of the term. The author, in this study, attempts to give the most complete philosophical analysis of the origin and understanding of the term «intellectuals», relying on philosophical, historical sources. In the book «Science» Fichte develops the idea of self-realization of self-conscious- ness, because, in his opinion, this is the primary principle of being, which builds the world. The term arose as the basic thinking, as the whole mental activity of man. Unlike Kant, Fichte denies the existence of unknowable «things in himself» and elevates the self-aware subject (I) to a single, true and independent reality. According to Fichte, the world of ob- jects, nature has no independence, but is generated by the activity of consciousness, the so- called world self. This concept develops a system of moral idealism that directs a person to useful activity, as his civic duty says. The value of the social component in the sense of the intellectuals is ascertained, personal and individual accents are transferred to the sphere of social significance, it is interpreted as the ability of a person to realize slightly higher than their own physical or biological needs.