Ramapithecus, << RAH muh PIHTH ih kuhs or RAH muh puh THEE kuhs, >> was a kind of ape that lived from about 14 million to 8 million years ago. Many scientists once believed that it was the earliest direct ancestor of human beings. Today, most scientists no longer believe that Ramapithecus was related to human beings. Instead, they think it was a close relative or possibly an ancestor of the orangutan, a large ape that lives in Asia. Ramapithecus probably lived in partially wooded areas and ate such foods as nuts, roots, and seeds.
Remains of Ramapithecus were first discovered by the American anthropologist George E. Lewis in 1932. That year, Lewis found parts of a jaw and some teeth in an area of northern India that is now part of Pakistan. He named the creature Ramapithecus, which means Rama’s ape. The name comes from Rama, a mythical prince of India, and the Greek word pithekos, meaning ape. More fossil jaws and teeth of Ramapithecus were found later in China, Greece, Hungary, India, Kenya, Pakistan, and Turkey.
Until the late 1970’s, many scientists classified Ramapithecus as a direct ancestor of modern humans. The scientists believed that Ramapithecus gradually developed into Australopithecus, a hominin that lived in Africa. A hominin is a member of the group that includes modern humans, their close relatives, and their ancestors. Since the late 1970’s, more complete fossil remains of Ramapithecus have been found in China and Pakistan. These fossils indicated that Ramapithecus was not a hominin but an ape. Today, scientists include fossils formerly classifed as Ramapithecus in another genus (group of species) called Sivapithecus. Many scientists believe that Sivapithecus was related to early ancestors of orangutans.
