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Little Ice Age
noun
: an episode of glacial expansion whose maximum extension occurred in the 17th and 18th centuries
Examples of Little Ice Age in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The mild conditions gave way to a frigid period known as the Little Ice Age, however, which held sway until the 19th century.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 7 Sep. 2024
Despite the breadth and force of Global Crisis, the story of the lessons learned from the Little Ice Age calls for one more chapter: on the dawning of an ecological consciousness.
—Deborah R. Coen, Foreign Affairs, 12 Feb. 2014
Since the late 18th century, which saw a period of global cooling and glacial formation known as the Little Ice Age, one quarter of the icefield’s total volume has melted.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 July 2024
Researchers are exploring how this global swap might have influenced the Little Ice Age that ended in the 19th century.
—Stephen Pyne, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2024
Willis noted that these two major flood events from ancient times occurred during a period of global cooling known as the Little Ice Age, which spanned roughly the the 14th to 19th centuries.
—Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2024
As the climate shifted from the medieval warm period, which ended in the 13th century, to the colder temperatures of the Little Ice Age, evidence of many smaller whale species disappeared from the archaeological record.
—Andrew Chapman, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 May 2024
The cities that Native Americans left behind during the Little Ice Age—ruins such as those at Chaco Canyon and Cahokia—led European explorers and modern archaeologists alike to imagine societal collapse and the tragic loss of a golden age.
—Kathleen Duval, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2024
Some scholars have asserted that the Little Ice Age stressed resources on the island between the 16th and 19th centuries, leading to the disappearance of palms and other important contributors to the islanders’ activities and well-being.
—Daniel Lewis, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Mar. 2024
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Word History
First Known Use
1939, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near Little Ice Age
Cite this Entry
“Little Ice Age.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Little%20Ice%20Age. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
More from Merriam-Webster on Little Ice Age
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about Little Ice Age
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