Aegyptopithecus

[ih-jip-toh-pith-i-kuhs, -puh-thee-kuhs]

noun

1. a presumed genus of extinct primate, known from remains of a single species, A. zeuxis, 33–35 million years old and thought to have resembled modern New World monkeys: most fossils originate in Egypt, the first having been discovered in central Egypt in 1965.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Aegyptopithecus¹

First recorded in 1960–65; from New Latin, equivalent to Latin Aegypt(us) “Egypt” + New Latin -o- + pithēcus “ape,” from Greek píthēkos; -o- ( def. )

Example Sentences

Other finds on expeditions led by Dr. Simons include Catopithecus, a primate somewhat older than Aegyptopithecus.

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Reconstructing the inner ear canals of Aegyptopithecus zeuxis and other ancient primates is giving scientists new clues about their locomotion.

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Dr. Simons and his team later turned up more Aegyptopithecus skulls — finds that suggested the creature was no towering intellectual.

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