This recently discovered rodent was originally considered to belong to a completely new family, the Laonastidae (Jenkins et al. 2005). It was subsequently determined to be a living survivor or lazarus species of the otherwise extinct family Diatomyidae, formerly believed to have been extinct for approximately 11 million years (Dawson et al., 2006).
Further molecular studies of the relationships of this living fossil (Huchon et al., 2007) revealed that Laonastes (and by implication, the extinct members of the family Diatomyidae) is a sister clade of the Family Ctenodactylidae (gundis) that are confined to Africa, although fossil members of the family occurred in Eurasia.
The genus name Laonastes, means "inhabitant of stone" from the Greek
in reference to its presence around limestone rocks and also to the country where it was recently discovered.
The species name aenigmamus means "enigma mouse" from Greek αινιγμα =
referring to its unknown position among the rodents (Jenkins et al., 2004).