Gossans

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of weathered rock often found near mineral deposits, characterized by the presence of iron oxides and other residual minerals
2. A geological feature resulting from the oxidation of sulfide ores, typically exhibiting a lighter coloration due to mineral alterations
3. Referring to surface manifestations of oxide minerals, usually indicating the presence of buried metal ores and helping in mining exploration

Etymology: "Gossans" is the plural of "gossan," a term miners in Cornwall used for the rusty, iron-stained rock that sits above a buried sulfide ore body. Its name comes from the Cornish "gossen," which is related to "gōs," the Cornish word for blood. The colour is the clue: oxidised iron minerals turn the surface a reddish or brownish hue, and the Cornish miners took that bloody look as the name. The word was borrowed into English in the 1770s, when the mining industry of Cornwall was among the most advanced in the world and English-speaking geologists were eager to describe its ores. Because the Cornish language was still spoken in mining communities at that time, the term reached English directly from the miners' vocabulary rather than from a scholarly coinage.