Even though its name appears to hint at it, the guinea pig is not a pig, nor is it even in the same family. Instead, it is classified as a rodents, and not even originally from the country of Guinea either. Its place of origin is the Andes in South America.
So, if it is not actually part of the pig family, then why does it have that name?
Well, there are several potential reasons as to why this is the case. Some people argue that it is entirely due to the way in which it squeals like a pig, while others claim it is because it is built like a pig even though it is in a much smaller fashion. To those that argue this point, it is because it has no real tail, a short neck, and when compared to the rest of its body, the neck is quite large just like a pig’s.
For the Guinea part, there is a theory that it actually relates to the guinea pig potentially being sold for the price of one Guinea, which was an old monetary coin that is now out of use. Of course, they cost a bit more than that today.