Laurentide

Laurentide is an adjective used in geography and geology to denote connections with Laurentia, the ancient core of North America, or to regions and features named after that core. In English usage, Laurentide most often appears in the names of the Laurentide Ice Sheet and the Laurentide region of Quebec, while in geology it points to the Laurentian Craton and related structures.

Laurentide Ice Sheet: A major ice sheet that covered much of Canada, the Great Lakes region, and parts of the northern United States during the Pleistocene, roughly from about 85,000 to 11,000 years ago. It reached its maximum extent around 21,000 years ago, shaping landscapes through glacial erosion and deposition, leaving behind moraines, drumlins and lake basins, and contributing to postglacial rebound. The retreat of the ice sheet allowed the Champlain Sea to form near the St. Lawrence River valley.

Laurentides region (Les Laurentides) in Quebec: A tourist-intensive region north of Montreal, centered on the Laurentian Mountains, part of the Canadian Shield. It is known for outdoor recreation, including skiing in winter and hiking in summer, as well as historic towns and scenic lakes. The French name is Les Laurentides; the area is often considered part of the wider Laurentian Mountains.

Geology: In geological terms, Laurentide designates features associated with the Laurentian Craton, the ancient bedrock core of eastern North America, and the surrounding Laurentide structural domain. The term reflects both the ancient geologic history and the geographic extent of the Laurentian region, including rock formations that underlie much of eastern Canada.