''vicariance'' ▫ᴱᴺ｜Definition｜1st｜20260708194133-00-⌔

vicariance - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

Noun

vicariance (countable and uncountable, plural vicariances)

• (biology) The separation of a group of organisms by a geographic barrier, resulting in differentiation of the original group into new varieties or species.
  • ✤ 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).¹
• (geology) The geological event which produces such a barrier (volcano, earthquake, etc)
• (psychology, colloquial) The act of experiencing an event by proxy through an empathic link with the person who is experiencing the event firsthand.

Etymology

From vicariant +‎ -ance.

Printed 2026-07-08.

(echo:: @ ⌗)

Footnotes

1. 2018 May 17, Hanneke Meijer, The Guardian ‎${}^{[1]}$: ↩