Ar*chæ"an (#), a. [Gr. ancient, fr. beginning.]
Ancient; pertaining to the earliest period in geological history.
© Webster 1913.
Ar*chæ"an, n. Geol.
The earliest period in geological period, extending up to the Lower Silurian. It includes an Azoic age, previous to the appearance of life, and an Eozoic age, including the earliest forms of life.
⇒ This is equivalent to the formerly accepted term Azoic, and to the Eozoic of Dawson.
© Webster 1913.