The first documented Sumatran rhinoceros was shot 16 km (9.9 mi) outside Fort Marlborough, near the west coast of Sumatra, in 1793.
Drawings of the animal, and a written description, were sent to the naturalist Joseph Banks, then president of the Royal Society of London, who published a paper on the specimen that year.
In 1814, the species was given a scientific name by Johann Fischer von Waldheim.

The specific epithet sumatrensis signifies "of Sumatra", the Indonesian island where the rhinos were first discovered.
Carl Linnaeus originally classified all rhinos in the genus, Rhinoceros; therefore, the species was originally identified as Rhinoceros sumatrensis or sumatranus.
Joshua Brookes considered the Sumatran rhinoceros, with its two horns, a distinct genus from the one-horned Rhinoceros, and gave it the name Didermocerus in 1828.
Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger proposed the name Dicerorhinus in 1841.
In 1868, John Edward Gray proposed the name Ceratorhinus.
Normally, the oldest name would be used, but a 1977 ruling by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature established the proper genus name as Dicerorhinus.
Dicerorhinus comes from the Greek terms di (δι, meaning "two"), cero (κέρας, meaning "horn"), and rhinos (ρινος, meaning "nose").

The three subspecies are:
D. s. sumatrensis, known as the Western Sumatran rhinoceros, which has only 75 to 85 rhinos remaining, mostly in the national parks of Bukit Barisan Selatan and Kerinci Seblat, Gunung Leuser in Sumatra, but also in Way Kambas National Park in small numbers.
They have recently gone extinct in Peninsular Malaysia.
The main threats against this subspecies are habitat loss and poaching.
A slight genetic difference is noted between the Western Sumatran and Bornean rhinos.
The rhinos in Peninsular Malaysia were once known as D. s. niger, but were later recognized to be a synonym of D. s. sumatrensis.
Three males and four females currently live in captivity at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary at Way Kambas, the youngest male having been bred and born there in 2012.
Another calf, a female, was born at the sanctuary in May 2016.
The sanctuary's two males were born at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.

D. s. harrissoni, known as the Bornean rhinoceros or Eastern Sumatran rhinoceros, which was once common throughout Borneo; now only about 15 individuals are estimated to survive.
The known population lives in East Kalimantan, with them having recently gone extinct in Sabah.
Reports of animals surviving in Sarawak are unconfirmed.
This subspecies is named after Tom Harrisson, who worked extensively with Bornean zoology and anthropology in the 1960s.
The Bornean subspecies is markedly smaller in body size than the other two subspecies.
The captive population consisted of one male and two females at the Borneo Rhinoceros Sanctuary in Sabah; the male died in 2019 and the females died in 2017 and 2019 respectively.

D. s. lasiotis, known as the Northern Sumatran rhinoceros or Chittagong rhinoceros, which once roamed India and Bangladesh, has been declared extinct in these countries.
Unconfirmed reports suggest a small population may still survive in Myanmar, but the political situation in that country has prevented verification.
The name lasiotis is derived from the Greek for "hairy-ears".
Later studies showed that their ear-hair was not longer than other Sumatran rhinos, but D. s. lasiotis remained a subspecies because it was significantly larger than the other subspecies.
The first documented Sumatran rhinoceros was shot 16 km (9.9 mi) outside Fort Marlborough, near the west coast of Sumatra, in 1793. Drawings of the animal, and a written description, were sent to the naturalist Joseph Banks, then president of the Royal Society of London, who published a paper on the specimen that year. In 1814, the species was given a scientific name by Johann Fischer von Waldheim.
The specific epithet sumatrensis signifies "of Sumatra", the Indonesian island where the rhinos were first discovered. Carl Linnaeus originally classified all rhinos in the genus, Rhinoceros; therefore, the species was originally identified as Rhinoceros sumatrensis or sumatranus. Joshua Brookes considered the Sumatran rhinoceros, with its two horns, a distinct genus from the one-horned Rhinoceros, and gave it the name Didermocerus in 1828. Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger proposed the name Dicerorhinus in 1841. In 1868, John Edward Gray proposed the name Ceratorhinus. Normally, the oldest name would be used, but a 1977 ruling by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature established the proper genus name as Dicerorhinus. Dicerorhinus comes from the Greek terms di (δι, meaning "two"), cero (κέρας, meaning "horn"), and rhinos (ρινος, meaning "nose").
The three subspecies are:
D. s. sumatrensis, known as the Western Sumatran rhinoceros, which has only 75 to 85 rhinos remaining, mostly in the national parks of Bukit Barisan Selatan and Kerinci Seblat, Gunung Leuser in Sumatra, but also in Way Kambas National Park in small numbers. They have recently gone extinct in Peninsular Malaysia. The main threats against this subspecies are habitat loss and poaching. A slight genetic difference is noted between the Western Sumatran and Bornean rhinos. The rhinos in Peninsular Malaysia were once known as D. s. niger, but were later recognized to be a synonym of D. s. sumatrensis. Three males and four females currently live in captivity at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary at Way Kambas, the youngest male having been bred and born there in 2012. Another calf, a female, was born at the sanctuary in May 2016. The sanctuary's two males were born at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.
D. s. harrissoni, known as the Bornean rhinoceros or Eastern Sumatran rhinoceros, which was once common throughout Borneo; now only about 15 individuals are estimated to survive. The known population lives in East Kalimantan, with them having recently gone extinct in Sabah. Reports of animals surviving in Sarawak are unconfirmed. This subspecies is named after Tom Harrisson, who worked extensively with Bornean zoology and anthropology in the 1960s. The Bornean subspecies is markedly smaller in body size than the other two subspecies. The captive population consisted of one male and two females at the Borneo Rhinoceros Sanctuary in Sabah; the male died in 2019 and the females died in 2017 and 2019 respectively.
D. s. lasiotis, known as the Northern Sumatran rhinoceros or Chittagong rhinoceros, which once roamed India and Bangladesh, has been declared extinct in these countries. Unconfirmed reports suggest a small population may still survive in Myanmar, but the political situation in that country has prevented verification. The name lasiotis is derived from the Greek for "hairy-ears". Later studies showed that their ear-hair was not longer than other Sumatran rhinos, but D. s. lasiotis remained a subspecies because it was significantly larger than the other subspecies.
Sumatran rhinoceros