Merriam's genera _Orthogeomys_, _Heterogeomys_, and _Macrogeomys_ are closely related. Each of these taxa is retained as a subgenus of a single genus, _Orthogeomys_. Some species of _Macrogeomys_ seem to be more closely allied to the subgenus _Orthogeomys_ and others to the subgenus _Heterogeomys_. A revision of the genus is needed; it might show that the currently recognized subgenera are artificial, and that a different arrangement of the species would more clearly express their evolutionary relationships. The subgenus _Heterogeomys_ seems to be the most nearly uniform of the subgenera, and it is the least specialized. Radiation within the genus may have begun relatively recently, but the many special adaptations for tropical environments suggest that the genus has been in the Neotropical Zone a long time. Therefore, discovery of an early dichotomy from the common ancestral stock of the tribe would come as no surprise. _Nerterogeomys_ Gazin here is arranged as a junior synonym of _Zygogeomys_. Both are less specialized than any of the other Geomyini, except _Pliogeomys_. The single living species (_Zygogeomys tricopus_) is obviously a relic. Its range is small. The two subspecies differ only in minor features. The living species does have a few unique characteristics, only to be expected in the surviving species of a long phyletic lineage. Some of these are specializations. Otherwise, _Zygogeomys_ and _Nerterogeomys_ are closely related and the latter is best placed as a synonym of the former. Both are admittedly closely related to _Geomys_. _Zygogeomys_ and _Geomys_ share several characters, particularly primitive ones; there is considerable parallelism, especially marked in Irvingtonian species of _Geomys_. Nevertheless, _Geomys_ is more specialized, particularly in the dentition, and it has developed some _Pappogeomys_-like specializations. _Zygogeomys_ has retained more of the primitive characters of the tribe. A strong case could be made for recognizing only one genus, _Geomys_, containing _Zygogeomys_ as one of two subgenera. Nevertheless, the characters separating _Zygogeomys_ and _Geomys_ are of considerable importance and I consider the two kinds to be distinct genera.