vicariance

English

Etymology

From vicariant +‎ -ance.

Noun

vicariance (countable and uncountable, plural vicariances)

1. (biology) The separation of a group of organisms by a geographic barrier, resulting in differentiation of the original group into new varieties or species.
   • 2018 May 17, Hanneke Meijer, The Guardian‎^[1]:

     Such an old origin for parts of Sulawesi would explain its unique biota and high species richness; species would have rafted along on these fragments from worlds since long lost (a process known as vicariance).

2. (geology) The geological event which produces such a barrier (volcano, earthquake, etc)
3. (psychology, colloquial) The act of experiencing an event by proxy through an empathic link with the person who is experiencing the event firsthand.

Related terms

• vicariated

References

• “vicariance”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• vicariance on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “vicariance”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

French

Noun

vicariance f (plural vicariances)

1. vicariance

Further reading

• “vicariance”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.