Silurian

Silurian
Silurian Si*lu"ri*an, a. [From L. Silures, a people who anciently inhabited a part of England and Wales.] (Geol.) Of or pertaining to the country of the ancient Silures; -- a term applied to the earliest of the Paleozoic eras, and also to the strata of the era, because most plainly developed in that country. [1913 Webster]

Note: The Silurian formation, so named by Murchison, is divided into the Upper Silurian and Lower Silurian. The lower part of the Lower Silurian, with some underlying beds, is now separated under the name Cambrian, first given by Sedwick. Recently the term Ordovician has been proposed for the Lower Silurian, leawing the original word to apply only to the Upper Silurian. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • silurian — SILURIÁN, Ă, silurieni, e, s.n., adj. 1. s.n. A treia perioadă a erei paleozoice care se caracterizează prin sedimentări de calcar, de gresie, de şisturi argiloase, prin apariţia primelor plante terestre şi prin dezvoltarea nevertebratelor marine …   Dicționar Român

  • Silurian — [si loor′ē ən, sīloor′ē ən] adj. 1. of the Silures 2. [because the rocks were first found in an area in SE Wales: see SILURES] [sometimes s ] designating or of the third geologic period of the Paleozoic Era, characterized by the development of… …   English World dictionary

  • Silurian — Si*lu ri*an, n. The Silurian age. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Silurian — 1708, pertaining to the Silures, from L. Silures ancient British tribe inhabiting southeast Wales. Geological sense is from 1835, coined by Sir Roderick Impey Murchison (1792 1871) because rocks of this period are especially frequent in Wales …   Etymology dictionary

  • Silurian — ► ADJECTIVE Geology ▪ referring to the third period of the Palaeozoic era (between the Ordovician and Devonian periods, about 439 to 409 million years ago), a time when the first fish and land plants appeared. ORIGIN from Silures, the Latin name… …   English terms dictionary

  • Silurian — Geological period from=444 middle=429 to=416 o2=14 co2=4500 temp=17The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Ma (million years ago), to the beginning of the Devonian period …   Wikipedia

  • Silurian — adjective Etymology: Latin Silures Date: 1708 1. of or relating to the Silures or their place of habitation 2. of, relating to, or being a period of the Paleozoic era between the Ordovician and Devonian or the corresponding system of rocks marked …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Silurian — a geological period within the Palaeozoic ca. 441 113 million years ago. Most of the major groups of fishes are thought to have originated in the Early Silurian. Abbreviated as S …   Dictionary of ichthyology

  • Silurian — /si loor ee euhn, suy /, adj. 1. of or pertaining to the Silures or their country. 2. Geol. noting or pertaining to a period of the Paleozoic Era, occurring from 425 to 405 million years ago, notable for the advent of air breathing animals and… …   Universalium

  • Silurian — 1. adjective Of a geologic period within the Paleozoic era; comprises the Llandovery, Wenlock, Ludlow and Pridoli epochs from about 439 to 409 million years ago. 2. noun …   Wiktionary

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