Paranthropus robustus

[ puh-ran-thruh-puhs roh-buhs-tuhs, par-uhn-throh-puhs ]

noun

1. an extinct species of large-toothed bipedal hominin, formerly named Australopithecus robustus, that lived in southern Africa about 1.5–2 million years ago.
2. a fossil belonging to this species.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Paranthropus robustus¹

First recorded in 1935–40; from New Latin; Paranthropus ( def ) + Latin rōbustus “oaken, hard, firm, strong”; robust