Monolithic

Monolithic is an adjective used to describe something formed of a single large block, piece, or mass. The word comes from the Greek monos, 'one,' and lithos, 'stone,' and is used more broadly to describe things that are indivisible, cohesive, or unified in scope.

In geology, a monolith is a natural rock formation that is one uninterrupted mass. In art and architecture, a monolithic statue or column is carved from a single piece of stone. Examples include Uluru (Ayers Rock) in Australia, and many ancient obelisks.

Monolithic construction can refer to architectural or engineering methods that place minimal joints or seams, such as large poured-in-place concrete structures that read as a single mass.

In computing, monolithic often describes monolithic architectures, where a software application is built as a single, unified unit with tightly coupled components. This contrasts with modular or microservices architectures, where components run independently and communicate across network boundaries. A monolithic kernel is a type of operating system kernel that includes most services, drivers, and file system code in a single large process, unlike a microkernel design.

At the organizational level, monolithic describes large, centralized structures that integrate core functions in a single codebase, process, or management system. While such designs can simplify governance and performance, they may hinder scalability, adaptability, and fault isolation, making large-scale changes harder.