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Geosyncline identification and geology

A now-obsolete term formerly used to describe large, elongate troughs in the Earth's crust that accumulated thick sequences of sediment, which were later compressed and uplifted to form mountain belts. The geosyncline concept has been superseded by plate tectonics, which explains sediment accumulation at passive continental margins, subduction zones, and rift basins. The term is of historical importance in understanding the evolution of geological thought. Field: stratigraphy. Example: The Appalachian geosyncline of 19th-century geological literature is now understood as a series of passive margin, rift, and foreland basins formed and deformed during multiple Wilson cycles over 500 million years.. Related terms: Plate tectonics, Orogeny, Basin, Passive margin.

Sources, scope & corrections

These authoritative resources support category-level nomenclature, terminology, identification methods, and safety. When a specimen-specific safety warning appears, the public-health source listed here directly supports that precaution. They are not line-by-line citations for every other property on this entry, and natural specimens vary.

Editorial owner
GeoMiner
Last updated
2026-03-30T15:19:41.999576+00:00
Review status
Published; not independently peer-reviewed
  • USGS Thesaurus — U.S. Geological Survey. Controlled earth-science terminology used to describe USGS information resources.
  • Glossary of Geologic Terms — U.S. National Park Service. Geologic definitions prepared by the NPS Geologic Resources Inventory.

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Common questions

What does Geosyncline mean in geology?
A now-obsolete term formerly used to describe large, elongate troughs in the Earth's crust that accumulated thick sequences of sediment, which were later compressed and uplifted to form mountain belts. The geosyncline concept has been superseded by plate tectonics, which explains sediment accumulation at passive continental margins, subduction zones, and rift basins. The term is of historical importance in understanding the evolution of geological thought.
What is an example of Geosyncline?
The Appalachian geosyncline of 19th-century geological literature is now understood as a series of passive margin, rift, and foreland basins formed and deformed during multiple Wilson cycles over 500 million years.
Which earth-science field uses the term Geosyncline?
Geosyncline is used in stratigraphy.
Which terms are related to Geosyncline?
Related terms in this reference are Plate tectonics, Orogeny, Basin, Passive margin.

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