uniformitarianism

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English[edit]

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology[edit]

From uniformitarian +‎ -ism, coined by English polymath William Whewell in 1837.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (UK) IPA(key): /juːnɪfɔːmɪˈtɛːɹɪənɪzm/

Noun[edit]

uniformitarianism (uncountable)

  1. (chiefly geology) The scientific principle that natural processes operated in the past in the same way and at the same rates that they operate today. [from 19th c.]
    Antonym: catastrophism
    • 2004, Richard Fortey, The Earth, Folio Society, published 2011, page 20:
      There has been much puffy stuff written about whether Lyell's uniformitarianism permitted variations in intensity of causes, or whether he applied his logic in a consistent way, and whether he assumed indefinite stretches of geological time.

Translations[edit]