PRIMORDIAL

aboriginal, primal, primeval, primaeval, primordial

(adjective) having existed from the beginning; in an earliest or original stage or state; “aboriginal forests”; “primal eras before the appearance of life on earth”; “the forest primeval”; “primordial matter”; “primordial forms of life”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Adjective

primordial (not comparable)

first, earliest or original

(biology) characteristic of the earliest stage of the development of an organism, or relating to a primordium

primeval

Noun

primordial (plural primordials)

A first principle or element.

Source: Wiktionary

Pri*mor"di*al, a. Etym: [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.)

Definition: 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.)

Definition: 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.

Definition: A first principle or element.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition