Ursidae
/ɜːrˈsɪdiː/noun
The biological family comprising bears, including the eight living species of true bears.
Did you know?The root behind Ursidae appears in the Greek name Arktos, source of Arctic—a linguistic connection between bears and the far north that survives in astronomy and taxonomy.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂ŕ̥tḱos
“Bear; an ancient Indo-European bear-word reconstructed from related terms across several languages”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ἄρκτος (árktos)
“Bear; also used for the northern constellation later called Ursa Major”
Classical Latin
Latin
ursus
“Bear”
18th Century
Scientific Latin
Ursus
“The genus name for bears, formed from the Latin word for bear”
1825
Scientific Latin
Ursidae
“The family of bears, created with the zoological family suffix -idae”
Modern English
English
ursid / Ursidae
“Relating to, or designating, the bear family”