Aurochs, << AWR oks, >> also called urus, is the name of a kind of extinct wild ox. Aurochs are the ancestors of present-day domestic (tame) cattle. After the most recent ice age, which ended about 11,500 years ago, aurochs spread across Europe, Asia, and northern Africa. Aurochs are often depicted in prehistoric cave paintings. 
People domesticated cattle by about 8,500 years ago, probably in northern Europe or in India and the Middle East. Experts believe that domesticated cattle arose from two types of aurochs, one with humps and one without. Aurochs populations were gradually reduced as people hunted them and civilization destroyed their habitats. The last aurochs died in a game preserve in Poland in 1627.
