pithecanthropus

pronunciation

How to pronounce pithecanthropus in British English: UK [ˌpiθikænˈθrəupəs]word uk audio image

How to pronounce pithecanthropus in American English: US [ˌpɪθɪˈkænθrəpəs, -kænˈθropəs] word us audio image

  • Noun:
    former genus of primitive apelike men now Homo erectus

Word Origin

pithecanthropus (n.)
genus of extinct primates, 1895, from Modern Latin, literally "monkey-man," from Greek pithekos "ape" + anthropos "man" (see anthropo-). Coined 1868 by Haeckel as a name for a hypothetical link between apes and men (attested in English in this sense from 1876); applied by Dr. Eugène Dubois (1858-1940), physician of the Dutch army in Java, to remains he found there in 1891.

Example

1. The fossil of the pithecanthropus Yuxian Man cranium unearthed in Shiyan is considered as the national treasure because of its high historical value .

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