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Glite Dictionary
Permian

Permian

9.3
A period about 298 to 252 million years ago when reptiles spread and many animals died
  • noun
  • /ˈpɜrmiən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : pérmico
  • There was a near loss of life on the planet in the Permian mass extinction.

Examples

  • The Permian period saw the rise of early reptiles, which later dominated the Mesozoic era.

  • This is the Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian, Triacid, Jurassic, Cretaceous, Tertiary.

  • Scientists study fossils from the Permian to understand how life rebounded after the mass extinction.

  • During the Permian, the Earth's continents were joined together in a supercontinent called Pangaea.

Synonyms

Permian period
vsPermian
  • Specialized
8.1

A time about 299 to 251 million years ago when many new reptiles appear and a mass extinction happens

is the same period but gives slightly different million years bounds

Compounds

Permian period
  • Specialized
8.1

A time about 299 to 251 million years ago when many new reptiles appear and a mass extinction happens

Surface Forms

Permian singular
Permians plural

Morphology

Permian = Perm (semi-transparent) = Perm + ian

Formed by the productive suffix '-ian' meaning 'relating to' a place, so the morphological formation is regular, but understanding that it denotes a geological period requires background knowledge of the naming convention.

Etymology

Permian gets its name from the area called Perm in Russia, where scientists first studied rocks and fossils from that time. The ending -ian means 'from' or 'of', just like in Victorian, so Permian means 'from Perm' and is used to name that long period in Earth's history.