In 1842, paleontologist Sir Richard Owen named these ancient giants “Dinosauria”, from the Greek:
🔹 Δεινός (deinos) = “terrible” or “fearsome”
🔹 Σαῦρος (sauros) = “lizard”
BUT—dinosaurs aren’t actually lizards! They belong to a completely different evolutionary group and are more closely related to birds than modern reptiles. 🦜🔥
So yes, the name is misleading—but it definitely sounds cool! 😆