1920-25;pan- + Greekgaîa earth; allegedly coined by German meteorologist Alfred L. Wegener (1880-1930)
British Dictionary definitions for Pangaea
Pangaea
/pænˈdʒiːə/
noun
1.
the ancient supercontinent, comprising all the present continents joined together, which began to break up about 200 million years ago See also Laurasia, Gondwanaland
Word Origin
C20: from Greek, literally: all-earth
Word Origin and History for Pangaea
"supercontinent of the late Paleozoic era," 1924, from Greek pan- "all" (see pan-) + gaia "earth" (see gaia). First attested in German, 1920, in Alfred Wegener's "Die Entstehung der Kontinente und Ozeane" (not found in 1914 first edition, according to OED).
Pangaea in Science
Pangaea
(pān-jē'ə)
A supercontinent made up of all the world's present landmasses joined together in the configuration they are thought to have had during the Permian and Triassic Periods. According to the theory of plate tectonics, Pangaea later broke up into Laurasia and Gondwanaland, which eventually broke up into the continents we know today.
Pangaea in Culture
Pangaea [(pan-jee-uh)]
A former “supercontinent” on the Earth. In the distant past a large landmass, Pangaea, included all the present continents, which broke up and drifted apart. (Seeplate tectonics.)