Archosauromorpha (
Greek for "ruling lizard forms") is an infraclass of
diapsid reptiles that first appeared during the late
Permian and became more common during the
Triassic. It was defined by
Jacques Gauthier, Arnold G. Kluge and Timothy Rowe (1988) as the group containing "
archosaurs [i.e.
Crocodylia,
dinosaurs,
birds, and several extinct orders] and all other
saurians that are closer to archosaurs (s.s.) than they are to
lepidosaurs (s.s.)" [i.e.
tuataras,
lizards, and
snakes]. In a later publication, Michel Laurin (1991) defined Archosauromorpha as the
clade containing the most recent common ancestor of
Prolacerta,
Trilophosaurus,
Hyperodapedon and archosaurs and all its descendants; David Dilkes (1998) formulated a more inclusive definition of Archosauromorpha, defining it as the clade containing
Protorosaurus and all other saurians that are more closely related to
Protorosaurus than to Lepidosauria.