A meerkat is a small, social mammal from southern Africa, known for standing upright on its hind legs to look out for danger. Meerkats live in groups and dig complex burrow systems.
From Afrikaans “meerkat”, originally from Dutch “meerkat” meaning 'monkey', itself from an older word whose origin is uncertain. Curiously, in Dutch the word refers to a kind of guenon monkey, not the animal English speakers call a meerkat. English borrowed the Afrikaans name but applied it to the famous standing mongoose.
The word 'meerkat' has nothing to do with cats—these animals are actually mongooses. Even stranger, the original Dutch word pointed to monkeys, so the name has wandered across three totally different mammals.
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