gorilla（n.）
“大猩猩”（Troglodytes gorilla）一词最早出现于1847年，由美国传教士托马斯·萨维奇（Thomas Savage）用于描述一种大型猿类。这个词源于希腊语 gorillai，是指一种野生、多毛的生物（现在被认为是黑猩猩），在公元前500年左右的迦太基航海家汉诺（Hanno）的航海记录的希腊文翻译中出现。据说这是一个非洲词汇。
In its inmost recess was an island similar to that formerly described, which contained in like manner a lake with another island, inhabited by a rude description of people. The females were much more numerous than the males, and had rough skins: our interpreters called them Gorillae. We pursued but could take none of the males; they all escaped to the top of precipices, which they mounted with ease, and threw down stones; we took three of the females, but they made such violent struggles, biting and tearing their captors, that we killed them, and stripped off the skins, which we carried to Carthage: being out of provisions we could go no further. [Hanno, "Periplus"]
“在最深处有一个类似于之前描述的岛屿，其中包含一个湖泊和另一个岛屿，由一群粗鲁的人居住。雌性比雄性多得多，皮肤粗糙：我们的翻译称它们为 Gorillae。我们追赶了雄性，但没有一个能够被捕获； 它们都轻松地爬上悬崖，扔下石头； 我们抓住了三只雌性，但它们挣扎得非常剧烈，咬和撕裂着它们的捕猎者，所以我们杀了它们，剥下了皮，带回了迦太基：由于没有食物，我们无法继续前进。”[汉诺，“周航”]
从1884年开始，这个词也用于形容看起来像大猩猩的人。
该词起源时间：1847年