Old World monkey

[ohld wurld muhng-kee]

noun

1. any of various catarrhine primates inhabiting a range of environments in Africa, Arabia, and Asia, typically having a hairless face, forward- or downward-directed nostrils, relatively short arms, flat nails, and a stubby or vestigial tail, as seen in most representative species, including baboons, colobuses, and mandrills: in contrast, long, often prehensile tails are characteristic of New World monkeys

Old World monkey

noun

1. any monkey of the family Cercopithecidae, including macaques, baboons, and mandrills. They are more closely related to anthropoid apes than are the New World monkeys, having nostrils that are close together and nonprehensile tails Compare New World monkey

Word History and Origins

Origin of Old World monkey¹

First recorded in 1835–40

Example Sentences

Tail loss in the group of primates that includes gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans is believed to have occurred about 25 million years ago, when the group evolved away from Old World monkeys, said the authors.

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Echoes from whatever happened during that period are still felt today as there are only about 20 species of apes, in contrast with more than 130 species of Old World monkeys in Africa and Asia.

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Some paleontologists argue that this group diverged from the common ancestors of Old World monkeys and apes before those two branches even split from one another.

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With a volume of about seven tablespoons, N. alesi’s brain cavity was more than double that of other Old World monkeys from the time.

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In the primate phylogeny, gibbons diverged between Old World monkeys and great apes, providing a unique perspective from which to study the origins of hominoid characteristics.

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