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Mineral identification and geology

A naturally occurring, inorganic, solid substance with a definite chemical composition or a defined range of compositions and an ordered internal crystalline structure. Minerals are the fundamental building blocks of rocks and are classified by their chemistry and crystal structure into groups such as silicates, carbonates, oxides, sulfides, halides, and native elements. Over 5,800 mineral species are currently recognized by the International Mineralogical Association. Field: mineralogy. Example: Quartz SiO₂ is one of the most common minerals on Earth, found in virtually every geological environment from granites to sandstones to hydrothermal veins, and exists in dozens of varieties including amethyst, citrine, and smoky quartz.. Related terms: Crystal, Rock, Mineraloid, Silicate.

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
2026-03-30T15:19:42.055955+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 Mineral mean in geology?
A naturally occurring, inorganic, solid substance with a definite chemical composition or a defined range of compositions and an ordered internal crystalline structure. Minerals are the fundamental building blocks of rocks and are classified by their chemistry and crystal structure into groups such as silicates, carbonates, oxides, sulfides, halides, and native elements. Over 5,800 mineral species are currently recognized by the International Mineralogical Association.
What is an example of Mineral?
Quartz SiO₂ is one of the most common minerals on Earth, found in virtually every geological environment from granites to sandstones to hydrothermal veins, and exists in dozens of varieties including amethyst, citrine, and smoky quartz.
Which earth-science field uses the term Mineral?
Mineral is used in mineralogy.
Which terms are related to Mineral?
Related terms in this reference are Crystal, Rock, Mineraloid, Silicate.

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