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International Dinosaur Discoveries

Early Dinosaur History Outside the United States

Who was the first person to coin the term “dinosaur”?

The first person to realize the bones of the ancient giant reptiles belonged to their own unique group was Sir Richard Owen (1804–1892), an English anatomist and paleontologist. In 1841, based on several partial fossil remains of Iguanodon, Megalosaurus, and Hylaeosaurus, he coined the term “dinosaur” (“terrible lizard”) to describe them.



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