Re: Hominoids and hominids

• Messages sorted by: [ date ][ thread ][ subject ][ author ]
• Next message: Ruby Rohrlich: "Re: Dance and cetera..."
• Previous message: Jim Moore: "Gathering, hunting, and whatever else we did..."

Then hominoids, ("oids" meaning "like") would refer to non-human
primates, who are "like" humans, and hominids ("ids", of) would refer to
humans, who are "of" humans. Ruby Rohrlich.

On Fri, 16 Feb 1996, James Murphy wrote:

> In more general terms, "-id" means "of" and "-oid" means "like."
>
> This is one reason suffixes are included in many dictionaries.
>
> Jim Murphy
> jmurphy@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
>
> > In message <Pine.3.89.9602151346.A26367-0100000@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu> Ruby
> > Rohrlich writes:
> > > Yes, my students always assumed that because I talked about hominoids, I
> > > must be a zoologist and know about elephants and mice. By the way, is it
> > > tautologous
> > > to talk about non-human hominoids? I was under the impression that
> > > "hominoids" refers to the non-human primates, and hominids strictly to
> >
> > Ruby,
> >
> > The way I learned it, "hominoid" is the cover term for apes and humans, both
> > living and extinct. It contrasts with "cercopithecoid" which refers to the o
> ld
> > world monkeys. "Hominid" is a subset of "hominoid" and refers to those
> > exhibiting bipedality, apparently beginning with the australopithecines.
> >
> > This sure is fun! Ron
> >
> >
> > Ronald Kephart
> > Dept of Language & Literature
> > University of North Florida
> > Jacksonville, FL USA 32224-2645
> > Phone: (904) 646-2580
> > E-mail: rkephart@osprey.unf.edu
> >
>

• Next message: Ruby Rohrlich: "Re: Dance and cetera..."
• Previous message: Jim Moore: "Gathering, hunting, and whatever else we did..."