Why Is It Called a Chevrotain?

Etymology. The word "chevrotain" comes from the French word chevrot (kid or fawn), derived from the Middle French chèvre (goat). The single African species is consistently known as "chevrotain".

What does the word chevrotain mean?

chevrotain in American English

(ˈʃevrəˌtein, -tɪn) noun. any very small, deerlike ruminant of the family Tragulidae, of Africa, tropical Asia, the Malay Peninsula, etc. Also called: mouse deer. [‹ F, appar.

Are chevrotain rodents?

Also called the Vietnamese mouse-deer, chevrotains are actually neither deer nor mice, but they're the smallest ungulates — or hoofed mammals — in the world, according to the GWC. It's been a long while since this mammal has been seen in real life. Its last sighting was in 1990 in Vietnam, according to the GWC.