Zinjanthropus

American  

[zin-jan-thruh-puhs, zin-jan-throh-] / zɪnˈdʒæn θrə pəs, ˌzɪn dʒænˈθroʊ- /

noun

1. a genus to which Paranthropus boisei was formerly assigned.

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zinjanthropus British  

/ zɪnˈdʒænθrəpəs /

noun

1. a type of australopithecine, Australopithecus boisei (formerly Zinjanthropus boisei ), remains of which were discovered in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania in 1959

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zinjanthropus Scientific  

/ zĭn-jăn′thrə-pəs,zĭn′jăn-thrō′- /

1. An extinct hominid postulated from bones found in Tanzania in 1959 and originally designated Zinjanthropus boisei by Louis S.B. Leakey. It was later shown to be an australopithecine and renamed Australopithecus boisei.

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Etymology

Origin of Zinjanthropus

First recorded in 1955–60; from New Latin, from Arabic zinj, an area in East Africa + Greek ánthrōpos “human being, man”

Example Sentences

Out of this treasure chest came bones of a lowbrowed creature that Dr. Leakey named Zinjanthropus and assigned in 1959 to an honored position in man's direct ancestry.

From Time Magazine Archive

Using a method known as potassium-argon dating, Zinjanthropus was determined to be 1.75 million years old.

From Time Magazine Archive

Despite his small brain size, he had a fairly high forehead, not a flat one like that of Zinjanthropus.

From Time Magazine Archive

It was Mary's 1959 discovery of the Zinjanthropus cranium at Olduvai that captured worldwide attention and made the Leakeys a household name.

From Time Magazine Archive

He was sure that Zinjanthropus was a toolmaker because crude stone tools were found near his remains.

From Time Magazine Archive