What Nearest relative to an whale?

The nearest relative to a whale is the hippopotamus. Both whales and hippos share a common ancestor that lived approximately 50 million years ago, making them part of a group called cetancodonta. Despite their vastly different environments and lifestyles, genetic and anatomical studies reveal significant similarities between the two. Other distant relatives include animals like pigs and deer, which also belong to the order Artiodactyla.