The term social Darwinism emerged in the 19th century after Charles Darwin published "On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life" (1859). It originated when concepts from "Origin of Species", such as "struggle for existence" and "natural selection", were first applied to social issues. Social Darwinists believed that society is governed by natural laws, the same ones that rule the animal world, and humans must struggle to survive and reproduce because resources are scarce and there is too much people. The ones who are fittest survive and pass on their characteristics to offsprings which leads to the development of society. Social Darwinism isn't unique movement because it was associated with authors who represented many different positions and differed in some important characteristics. Social Darwinism has been blamed for various evils throughout history, and it always evokes negative connotations. It has also been the subject of much debate and dissent. There is no consensus on how to define social Darwinism and who can be considered a social Darwinist, or whether Darwin himself should be considered a social Darwinist. One reason for this is the ambiguity of Darwin's works from which different conclusions can be drawn by selective citation. This paper examines, among other things, the emergence of social Darwinism, its characteristics, similarities and differences between social Darwinists, and discusses the debate over whether to label Darwin as a social Darwinist.