Move Over Baby Shark, This 2-Year-Old Is Part Of Prestigious High-IQ Society
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Last Updated: May 28, 2025, 12:59 IST
This makes him the youngest male ever to join the high-IQ society. (Photo Credit: X)
A remarkable two-year-old boy from the UK has earned the distinction of being the youngest male member of Mensa, the world's oldest and largest high-IQ society, according to a Guinness World Records report. To qualify for this exclusive club, individuals must rank in the top 2 per cent of IQ scores or have an IQ of at least 132.
Joseph Harris-Birtill officially became a Mensa member at the age of 2 years and 182 days, making him the youngest male to ever join. He is second only to Joseph Isla McNabb, who holds the record for the youngest member overall, having joined at 2 years and 195 days old. This extraordinary achievement highlights Joseph's exceptional intellectual abilities at an incredibly young age.
Joseph's parents, Rose and David Harris-Birtill, both serve as lecturers at the University of St Andrews. They shared that their son has consistently shown remarkable intelligence and development far beyond his years since he was born.
'He first rolled over at five weeks, said his first word at seven months and read his first book out loud from cover to cover at one and three-quarters years. By two-and-a-quarter years old, he was reading out loud fluently for 10 minutes at a time, could count to 10 in five languages and could count forwards and backwards to well over 100," Rose revealed to Guinness World Records.
This exceptionally curious two-year-old is already familiar with the Greek alphabet and has reportedly begun learning Morse code and the periodic table. Alongside these impressive intellectual pursuits, he's also taking piano lessons and shows a genuine passion for exploring new languages, solving math problems and experimenting with cooking.
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Despite his advanced abilities, Joseph remains humble, kind-hearted and always willing to share his toys with other children. His parents reportedly recognised his extraordinary talents early on—especially after he started reading at an unusually young age—which prompted them to reach out to Mensa to explore his potential further. Their decision has since opened doors to new opportunities and support for their gifted son's continued growth.
'It is a common misconception that everything is super easy for gifted children. But everyone needs appropriate stimulation and understanding throughout their lives and highly able learners can sadly have their unique talents dimmed by the pressure to fit into environments that simply haven't been properly designed for them," Rose told Guinness World Records.
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