![cover image](https://wikiwandv2-19431.kxcdn.com/_next/image?url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/North_america_basement_rocks.png/640px-North_america_basement_rocks.png&w=640&q=50)
Laurentia
Craton forming the geological core of North America / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the use of the surname "Laurentia", see Laurentum. For the bioregion of the same name, see Laurentia (bioregion). For the saint, see Palatias and Laurentia. For other uses, see Laurentia (disambiguation).
Laurentia or the North American Craton is a large continental craton that forms the ancient geological core of North America. Many times in its past, Laurentia has been a separate continent, as it is now in the form of North America, although originally it also included the cratonic areas of Greenland and the Hebridean Terrane in northwest Scotland. During other times in its past, Laurentia has been part of larger continents and supercontinents and consists of many smaller terranes assembled on a network of early Proterozoic orogenic belts. Small microcontinents and oceanic islands collided with and sutured onto the ever-growing Laurentia, and together formed the stable Precambrian craton seen today.[1][2][3]
![Thumb image](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/North_america_basement_rocks.png/320px-North_america_basement_rocks.png)