Giant's Causeway

Giant's Causeway
a large body of basalt, unusual in displaying perfect columnar jointing, exposed on a promontory on the northern coast of Northern Ireland.
[1770-80]

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▪ geological formation, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
IrishClochán an Aifir,
 
promontory of basalt columns along 4 miles (6 km) of the northern coast of Northern Ireland. It lies on the edge of the Antrim plateau between Causeway Head and Benbane Head, some 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Londonderry. There are approximately 40,000 of these stone pillars, each typically with five to seven irregular sides, jutting out of the cliff faces as if they were steps creeping into the sea.

      Formed 50 to 60 million years ago during the early Tertiary Period, the Giant's Causeway resulted from successive flows of lava inching toward the coast and cooling when they contacted the sea. Layers of basalt formed columns, and the pressure between these columns sculpted them into polygonal shapes that vary from 15 to 20 inches (38 to 51 cm) in diameter and measure up to 82 feet (25 metres) in height. They are arrayed along cliffs averaging some 330 feet (100 metres) in elevation.

 First documented in 1693, the formation has been intensively studied by geologists. The Giant's Causeway and its coastal environs were bequeathed to the National Trust (a British organization that promotes the preservation of natural and architectural wonders) in 1961. Subsequently, the site was extended to some 200 acres (80 hectares); it was added to UNESCO's World Heritage List (World Heritage site) in 1986. It is protected not only for its beauty but also because its cliffs, seashores, marshes, and grasslands are home to some 50 species of birds, as well as to more than 200 species of plants. Humans settled around the Giant's Causeway in the 19th century, but the site is now uninhabited. It does, however, attract some 300,000 tourists annually. Deriving its name from local folklore, it is fabled to be the work of giants, particularly of Finn MacCumhaill (MacCool), who built it as part of a causeway to the Scottish island of Staffa (which has similar rock formations) for motives of either love or war.
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Giant's Causeway — Giant’s Causeway Der Giant s Causeway („Damm des Riesen“) befindet sich an der nördlichen Küste des County Antrim, Nordirland, östlich des kleinen Städtchens Bushmills. Die UNESCO zählt den Giant s Causeway zum Weltnaturerbe. Er besteht aus etwa… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Giant's causeway — Giant’s Causeway Der Giant s Causeway („Damm des Riesen“) befindet sich an der nördlichen Küste des County Antrim, Nordirland, östlich des kleinen Städtchens Bushmills. Die UNESCO zählt den Giant s Causeway zum Weltnaturerbe. Er besteht aus etwa… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Giant’s Causeway — Giant’s Causeway, von oben gesehen …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Giant's Causeway — Giant Gi ant, n. [OE. giant, geant, geaunt, OF. jaiant, geant, F. g[ e]ant, L. gigas, fr. Gr. ?, ?, from the root of E. gender, genesis. See {Gender}, and cf. {Gigantic}.] [1913 Webster] 1. A man of extraordinari bulk and stature. [1913 Webster]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Giant's Causeway — Giant s Cause|way the Giant s Causeway a group of unusually shaped rocks on the coast of Northern Ireland, which were formed by a flow of ↑lava into the sea …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Giant's Causeway — (spr. dschai ĕnts kaos wē, Riesendamm), umfangreiche Basaltbildung an der Nordküste der irischen Grafschaft Antrim, 6 km nordöstlich von Bushmills, besteht aus etwa 40,000 Basaltsäulen, die einen 40–16 m breiten, etwa 275 m weit sich ins Meer… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Giant's Causeway — (spr. dscheiĕnts kahs weh, »Riesendamm«), Damm von 40.000 Basaltsäulen an der Nordostspitze Irlands, 275 m lg., 40 46 m br …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Giant's Causeway —   [ dʒaɪənts kɔːzweɪ; englisch »Riesendamm«], fast 5 km langer Kliffküstenabschnitt mit Basaltsäulen an der Nordküste Irlands, im Distrikt Moyle von Nordirland.   …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Giant's Causeway — headland in N Northern Ireland, consisting of thousands of small, vertical basaltic columns: c. 3 mi (4.8 km) long …   English World dictionary

  • Giant's Causeway — For other uses, see Giant s Causeway (disambiguation). Coordinates: 55°14′27″N 6°30′42″W / 55.24083°N 6.51167°W / 55.2 …   Wikipedia

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