Main Article: Hominidae
The hominids are the members of the biological family Hominidae (the "great apes"), which includes humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans. This classification has been revised several times in the last few decades and is discussed both at Hominidae and History of Hominoid Taxonomy.
The term is easily confused with a number of very similar words:
- A hominoid is a member of the superfamily Hominoidea.
- A hominid is a member of the family Hominidae.
- A hominine is a member of the subfamily Homininae.
- A hominin is a member of the tribe Hominini.
Certain morphological characteristics are still used conventionally (though incorrectly) to support the idea that hominid should only denote humans and human ancestors, namely bipedalism and large brains. These points of departure between human beings and the other great apes are important, but taxonomically do not divide us into seperate families. Genetics, rather than morphology, is the critical test of relatedness and in this respect humans and the other great apes ought to be of the same family. Indeed, the terms hominid and "Great Ape" are now effectively coterminous.
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