Hominid means a member of the great-ape family, which includes humans, chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans. Hominin means a member of the human evolutionary group, including living humans and fossil relatives. Living humans are Homo sapiens—both hominins and hominids.
What’s the difference between hominids and hominins?
The terms name groups of different breadth. In the Smithsonian Human Origins Glossary’s usage, a hominid belongs to family Hominidae, the great-ape family; a hominin belongs to tribe Hominini, the human evolutionary group. Hominins are therefore within the broader great-ape family, while the hominid group also includes great apes outside the human evolutionary line.
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| Term | Meaning | Includes nonhuman great apes? | Taxonomic context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hominid | The great-ape evolutionary group | Yes: orangutans, chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas | Family Hominidae |
| Hominin | The human evolutionary group, including living and fossil members | No, in this usage | Tribe Hominini |
| Human | Common term for members of the human evolutionary group; living humans are Homo sapiens | No, when used for humans | Common-language label; living species Homo sapiens |
The Smithsonian glossary notes a usage wrinkle: some researchers still use “hominid” in the older, narrower sense of the human evolutionary group, where other sources use “hominin.” If a source uses the word differently, check its definition and context rather than assuming the broader modern family meaning.
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Yes. Humans are hominids because they belong to Hominidae, the great-ape family. They are also hominins because they belong to the human evolutionary group. These labels describe nested taxonomic groups, not competing identities.
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Are humans apes?
Yes, in biological classification. Humans are primates and members of the great-ape family. That does not mean humans descended from chimpanzees, gorillas, or any other living ape species. The Smithsonian’s introduction to human evolution describes humans and African great apes as sharing a common ancestor that lived between 8 and 6 million years ago.
What species are living humans?
All living humans are Homo sapiens. The Smithsonian’s species overview describes Homo sapiens as evolving in Africa and living from about 300,000 years ago to the present.
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How many hominin species were there?
There is no single settled count. The number and boundaries of early human species are debated. The Smithsonian’s species overview identifies species accepted by most scientists, but its list should not be mistaken for universal agreement on every species or classification.
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