A common misconception is that they were so named because they were sold for the price of a guinea coin; this hypothesis is untenable, because the guinea was first struck in England in 1663, and William Harvey used the term "Ginny-pig" as early as 1653.
Kesalahpahaman yang paling umum adalah bahwa mereka dinamai demikian karena mereka dijual dengan harga sebuah koin; hipotesis ini tidak dapat dipertahankan, karena guinea pertama kali diserang di Inggris pada 1663, dan William Harvey menggunakan istilah "Ginny-babi" pada awal 1653.