Geology and Nomenclature: Why some names kick assI always appreciate a clever name or at least one t

Geology and Nomenclature: Why some names kick assI always appreciate a clever name or at least one that is descriptive of the object at hand. A firm favourite is roche moutonnée, a glacial feature which literally translates as ‘rock sheep’ due a pockmarked surface that resembles a particularly ragged sheep’s fleece.So what other cool names are out there? I’ve compiled a short list of my favourites below but if you know of others feel free to enlighten us in the comments!Petroleum – comes from the Latin petra meaning ‘rock’ and oleum meaning oil. Literally means rock oil.Ammonite – derived from the name of the Egyptian god Amon who was often depicted with ram horns or a full ram’s head. It was thought that the fossils looked like his tightly coiled horns!Protolith – comes from the Ancient Greek protos meaning ‘first’ and the word lithos meaning ‘stone’ or ‘rock’. Literally translates to first rock, a very apt name as it is used to describe a metamorphic rocks original rock type before transformation.Metamorphic – Comes from the Greek meta which means ‘change’ and morph which translates as ‘form’. The ‘-ic’ indicates that we are talking about the ‘nature of changing form’ whereas ‘-osis’ would suggest we are talking about the ‘process of changing form’.Sedimentary – thought to be derived from the Latin word sedimentum meaning ‘settling’.Igneous – derived from the Latin word ignis which means ‘fire’. The suffix ‘-eous’ means ‘composed of’ meaning igneous literally translates as ‘composed of fire’.Echinodermata – Groups of animals with radial symmetry including starfish, sea urchins and sea lillies. Comes from the Greek echinos meaning ‘hedgehog’ and derma meaning ‘skin’ to describe fossilised sea urchins as their spines reminded geologists of a hedgehogs.Dinosaur – derived from the Greek deinos meaning ‘terrible’ and sauros meaning ‘lizard’. It was used to convey a sense of appreciation for the size and magnificence of the fossils.WatsonReference: http://membean.com/wrotds/morph-shapeFurther Reading: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/21208/AmonImage Credit: www.paleoart.com -- source link

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