What is "simia"

Simia \Sim"i*a\, n. [L., an ape; cf. simus flatnosed, snub-nosed, Gr. ???.] (Zo["o]l.) A Linn[ae]an genus of Quadrumana which included the types of numerous modern genera. By modern writers it is usually restricted to the genus which includes the orang-outang.

In his Systema Naturae of 1758, Carolus Linnaeus divided the Order Primates into four genera: Homo, Simia, Lemur, and Vespertilio. His Vespertilio included all bats, and has since been moved from Primates to Chiroptera. Homo contained humans, Lemur contained four lemurs and a colugo, and Simia contained all the rest — it was, in modern terms, a wastebasket taxon for the primates. Linnaeus did not think that Homo should form a distinct group from Simia, classifying them separately mainly to avoid conflict with religious authorities. If we take this into account, Simia (including Homo) would be roughly equivalent to the Suborder Haplorrhini of the Primates (while Lemur would be roughly equivalent to the Suborder Strepsirrhini).

Homo, Lemur, and Vespertilio have survived as generic names, but Simia has not. All the species have since been moved to other genera, and in 1929, the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature ruled in its Opinion 114 that Simia be suppressed. The genus Simias is distinct and remains valid, containing a single species, the pig-tailed langur (Simias concolor).

The original genus Simia came to include these species:

Modern genus

Modern common name

Original scientific name

Carlito Groves and Shekelle, 2010

Philippine tarsier

Simia syrichta Linnaeus, 1758

Callithrix Erxleben, 1777

Silvery marmoset

Simia argentata Linnaeus, 1771

Common marmoset

Simia jacchus Linnaeus, 1758

Leontopithecus Lesson, 1840

Golden lion tamarin

Simia rosalia Linnaeus, 1766

Saguinus Hoffmannsegg, 1807

Brown-mantled tamarin

Simia leonina Humboldt, 1806

Red-handed tamarin

Simia midas Linnaeus, 1758

Cotton-top tamarin

Simia oedipus Linnaeus, 1758

Cebus Erxleben, 1777

White-fronted capuchin

Simia albifrons Humboldt, 1812

White-headed capuchin

Simia capucina Linnaeus, 1758

Tufted capuchin

Simia apella Linnaeus, 1758

Simia fatuellus Linnaeus, 1766

Saimiri Voigt, 1831

Common squirrel monkey

Simia sciurea Linnaeus, 1758

Alouatta Lacépède, 1799

Red-handed howler

Simia belzebul Linnaeus, 1766

Venezuelan red howler

Simia seniculus Linnaeus, 1766

Ateles É. Geoffroy, 1806

Red-faced spider monkey

Simia paniscus Linnaeus, 1758

Lagothrix É. Geoffroy, 1812

Brown woolly monkey

Simia lagotricha Humboldt, 1812

Pithecia Desmarest, 1804

White-faced saki

Simia pithecia Linnaeus, 1766

Chiropotes Lesson, 1840

Black bearded saki

Simia chiropotes Humboldt, 1812

Callicebus Thomas, 1903

Black titi

Simia lugens Humboldt, 1812?

Atlantic titi

Simia personatus É. Geoffroy, 1812

Chlorocebus Gray, 1870

Grivet

Simia aethiops Linnaeus, 1758

Green monkey

Simia sabacea Linnaeus, 1766

Cercopithecus Linnaeus, 1758
(named as a subsection of Simia)

Moustached guenon

Simia cephus Linnaeus, 1758

Diana monkey

Simia diana Linnaeus, 1758

Simia faunus Linnaeus, 1758

Greater spot-nosed monkey

Simia nictitans Linnaeus, 1766

Macaca Lacépède, 1799

Crab-eating macaque

Simia aygula Linnaeus, 1758

Barbary macaque

?Simia cynamolgos Linnaeus, 1758

?Simia cynomolgus Linnaeus, 1766

Simia inuus Linnaeus, 1766

Simia sylvanus Linnaeus, 1758

Southern pig-tailed macaque

Simia nemestrina Linnaeus, 1766

Lion-tailed macaque

Simia silenus Linnaeus, 1758

Toque macaque

Simia sinica Linnaeus, 1771

Papio Erxleben, 1777

Hamadryas baboon

Simia hamadryas Linnaeus, 1758

Yellow baboon

Simia cynocephalus Linnaeus, 1758

Mandrillus Ritgen, 1824

Mandrill

Simia sphynx Linnaeus, 1758

Simia maimon Linnaeus, 1766

Pygathrix É. Geoffroy, 1812

Red-shanked douc

Simia nemaeus Linnaeus, 1771

Pongo Lacépède, 1799

Bornean orangutan

Simia pygmaeus Linnaeus, 1760

Simia satyrus Linnaeus, 1758

Pan Oken, 1816

Common chimpanzee

Simia satyrus Linnaeus, 1758

Simia troglodytes Blumenbach, 1775

(unknown)

Simia apedia Linnaeus, 1758

Simia morta Linnaeus, 1758

Simia trepida Linnaeus, 1766

Simia veter Linnaeus, 1766