English
Pangaea
Pangaea comes from Ancient Greek γαῖα ‘earth, land’.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEγαῖα‘earth, land’
- Englishearliest quotation 2021Pangaea
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEγαῖα‘earth, land’
- Englishearliest quotation 2021Pangaea
Earliest quotation: 2021, J. B. Murphy, R. A. Strachan: “The supercontinent status of Pangaea and Rodinia is undisputed.…”
The story
From Ancient Greek παν- (pan-, “all”) + γαῖα (gaîa, “earth, land”), after German Pangäa, which was coined by Alfred Wegener in 1915.
Every English word from Ancient Greek γαῖα
Today it means
name A former supercontinent that included all the landmasses of the earth before the Triassic period and that broke up into Laurasia and Gondwana.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek γαῖα / Pangaea