The Circular Etymology of the Neanderthal

Have you ever noticed that etymology the word Neanderthal constitutes an ouroboros? An etymology that bites its own tail, as it were—here’s how it works.

Neanderthals, often thought of as primitive, were actually a relatively young (or new) species of human.

The name Neanderthal comes from the place where their fossils were discovered: the Neander Valley in Germany. But here’s the twist—this valley is named after Joachim Neander, this 17th-century German theologian:

And here’s where it gets interesting: Joachim Neander’s surname is actually a hellenized form of the German Neumann (think “new man”). In Greek, Νέ-ανδρος (Ne-andros) literally translates to ‘new man’. This kind of classical makeover was common among scholars and theologians in early modern Germany. So, Neanderthal essentially means ‘valley of the new man’. Here the snake clamps down. Nomen est omen.