Yes, from what I read on MW and other sources, it is true that the monkeys were believed to have come to the land from the sea...and that is the meer/monkey part of the equation. The catte part simply meant cat. So it must be that meerkat meant "monkey cat." And the cat part makes sense because, as suggested above, the meerkat does move about with the agility of the cat. As a friend noted in an offline conversation, they look like little men as they stand about. It is curious how they hold their little paws, side-by-side, over their little bellies as they stand in the sun to recover energy lost during the night. Their hands look prim and proper--they stand like dignitaries in a reception line.