Pri*mor"di*al (?), a. [L.
primordialis, from primordium the first beginning;
primus first + ordiri to begin a web, to begin: cf. F.
primordial.] 1. First in order; primary;
original; of earliest origin; as, primordial condition.
"The primordial facts of our intelligent nature." Sir W.
Hamilton.
2. (Geol.) Of or pertaining to the
lowest beds of the Silurian age, corresponding to the Acadian and
Potsdam periods in American geology. It is called also
Cambrian, and by many geologists is separated from the
Silurian.
3. (Biol.) Originally or earliest
formed in the growth of an individual or organ; as, a
primordial leaf; a primordial cell.
Primordial utricle (Bot.), the
interior lining of a young vegetable cell.
Pri*mor"di*al, n. A first principle
or element.
