Mineralogies

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The study of minerals, including their composition, structure, and properties
2. A branch of geology that focuses on the classification and identification of minerals and their formations
3. The scientific discipline dedicated to understanding the physical and chemical characteristics of minerals found in nature

Etymology: "Mineralogies" is simply the plural of "mineralogy", so it refers to several distinct studies of minerals, or to the mineral-study traditions of different places or periods. The base word comes from New Latin "mineralogia", built from Medieval Latin "minera" (meaning "mineral", itself rooted in "mine") and Latin "-logia" ("study"), the same "-logy" ending found in words like "biology" and "geology". The word is a transparent compound, formed by joining "mineral" with the suffix "-logy" from Greek-derived "-logia". The ending came into English as a standard way to name a field of study, so "mineralogy" follows the pattern of earlier scientific coinages in the same family.