huttonian

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. In geology, relating to the views and theories of James Hutton (1726–1797). Hutton wrote and published voluminously in various departments of natural science and metaphysics, but when the term Huttonian is used it is generally with reference to his work in geology. The most important feature of Hutton's theories was his attempt to explain the former changes of the earth's crust by the aid of natural agencies exclusively. In opposition to Werner, he maintained that granite and basalt were rocks which had undergone fusion by subterranean heat, and this view and others held by him were for some years the subject of violent controversies.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. adj. Relating to what is now called the Plutonic theory of the earth, first advanced by Dr. James Hutton.