Dinopithecus

noun

Di·​no·​pi·​the·​cus

-pə̇ˈthēkəs,

-ˈpithə̇kəs

: a genus of extinct Pleistocene African baboons that were nearly the size of gorillas

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin, from dino- dino- + -pithecus -pithecus

Note: Genus name introduced by the Scottish-born South African physician and paleontologist Robert Broom (1866-1951) in "On Some New Pleistocene Mammals from Limestone Caves of the Transvaal," South African Journal of Science, vol. 33 (March, 1937), pp. 753-55. The full species name of Broom's baboon was Dinopithecus ingens.

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