Young chimpanzees are sometimes mistakenly referred to as monkeys. From a cladistic perspective, apes can be classified as monkeys. Baboons, despite being more closely related to apes than New World Monkeys, are still considered monkeys. This suggests that the common ancestors of baboons, apes, and New World Monkeys were themselves a type of monkey.

The scientific classification for monkeys is the infraorder “Simiiformes,” which includes apes (Hominoidea). Humans, being a subset of apes along with chimpanzees, do not have a clear distinction from monkeys in general. Although colloquially, “monkey” is still used to refer to non-ape simians, people often call chimpanzees monkeys as well. Therefore, it becomes challenging to separate ourselves from them in this context. 🤷‍♂️

Hint: The monkey is found on both sides. 😉