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| A subdivision of a geologic period. |
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| The movement of continental land masses on top of a partially molten layer of the earth's mantle that has altered the relative location of the continents over time. |
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| The first epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating between 65.5 million and 55.8 million years ago. The primate-like mammals appeared during the Paleocene. |
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| A species of primate-like mammal that had some derived primate traits, such as a grasping foot and an opposable big toe. This species is intermediate in many respects between primitive primate-like mammals and true primates. |
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| The second epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating between 55.8 million and 33.9 million years ago. The first true primates, primitive prosimians, appeared during the Eocene. |
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| The third epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating between 33.9 and 23.0 million years ago. Anthropoids underwent an adaptive radiation during the Oligocene. |
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| The fourth epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating between 23.0 million and 5.3 million years ago. Several adaptive radiations of hominoids occured during the Miocene, and the oldest known possible hominins appeared during the Late Miocene. |
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| The combined land masses of Europe and Asia. |
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| Referring to that part of the skeleton below the skull. |
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| A genus of fossil hominoid that lived in Africa between 21 million and 14 million years ago and that shows a number of monkey characteristics. |
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| A gap next to the canine tooth that allows space for the canine on the opposing jaw. |
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| A genus of fossil ape that lived in Asia between 12.5 million and 7 million years ago, possibly an ancestor of modern orangutans. |
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| A genus of fossil ape that lived in Hungary and Spain during the Middle and Late Miocene that might be an ancestor of African apes and humans. |
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| A genus of fossil ape that lived in Greece during the Late Miocene that might be an ancestor of African apes and humans. |
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| The application of methods of genetic analysis to estimate the sequence and timing of divergent evolutionary lines. |
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