The phrase Proto-Pygmy, originally coined by Ivan T. Sanderson as Proto-Pigmies, is used by modern researchers such as Mark A. Hall, Patrick Huyghe and Loren Coleman to describe the smallest of the world’s unknown Hominids. Proto-Pygmies are thought to inhabit tropical forests as well as swamp lands in southern Asia, Africa, North America and Latin America. Adult Proto-Pygmies are often described as being between 3 and 5 feet tall with black, brown or reddish orange fur. The hair on their heads is often a different length and texture than the fur that covers the rest of their bodies. Their faces are often fur free and look rather ancient, with an almost human like appearance. They have small feet, which are no longer than five inches, and have sharp heals.

Proto-Pygmies are known by different names all over the world, such names include Alux, Agogwe, Teh-lma, Sebite, Menebune, Sedapa, Orang Pendek and Shiru to name just a few. Some North American Bigfoot researchers suggest that Proto-Pygmies are simply baby Bigfoot, this theory however does not take into account that the tracks of the Proto-Pygmy are small with pointed heals and uneven toes, drastically different from presumed Bigfoot tracks which are more human like. British primatologist W.C.

Osman Hill thought that the Proto-Pygmies of Sri Lanka, the Orang Pendek, were a small form of Homo erectus, an extinct member of the genus Homo which walked the early roughly 1.8 million years ago. Bernard Heuvelmans thought that some of the small hominid reports that come out of Africa could be a relict populations of Australopithecus, which walked the earth some 1.2 million years ago and shared many traits with both modern primates and humans. Others, like Sanderson, felt that some Proto-Pygmies might be an unclassified, pygmy form of Homo sapiens, modern man, that has retreated into the rainforests and tropical mountain valleys of Africa or Asia.

With the discovery of Homo floresiensis in October 2004, the thought of Proto-Pygmies has become more main stream. These small skeletons found in a cave on Flores Island, located in Indonesia, date back roughly 12,000 years. The skeletons, which where originally thought to be the bodies of children, are roughly 3 feet tall and later determined to be a new, be it very small, species of the genus Homo. The fact that an unknown form of hominid like Homo floresiensis existed so recently in geographically terms, coupled with the similarities between these bodies and eyewitness reports of Proto-Pygmies the world over have led some researchers to put new stock in the existence of undiscovered, short, hair covered hominids still existing in the remote hard to reach rain forests and swamp lands of the world.

The Evidence
For Proto-Pygmy evidence please see the Unknown Explorers sections on such reported Proto-Pygmies as Agogwe, Orang Pendek and others.

The Sightings
Visit the Unknown Explorers section on Agogwe and Orang Pendek for examples of Proto-Pygmy sightings.

The Stats – (Where applicable)

• Classification: Hominid
• Size: 3 to 5 feet tall
• Weight: Unknown
• Diet: Local vegetation and small animals
• Location: Around the World
• Movement: Bipedal Walking
• Environment: Rain Forests and Swamp land