MOUNTAIN (O. Fr. montaigne; popular Lat. montanea, an adjectival form from the classical mons, montis, whence Eng. “mount,” a form usually used along with the name of an individual mountain, e.g. Mt Everest), a natural elevation of the earth’s surface. The term properly connotes height superior to that of a hill (O. Eng. hyll, cognate with Lat. collis); but the distinction depends on the prominence of a given elevation in relation to its surroundings, and in some degree to the bold or gentle character of its outline.
For the classification of mountains according to the various processes of their formation, see Geography, § Principles of Geography; and for further details Geology, § viii.