Continental drift is the hypothesis that the Earths continents have moved over geologic time relative to each other, thus appearing to have "drifted" across the ocean bed. The idea of continental drift was first proposed by Alfred Wegener, a German meteorologist, in 1912. He suggested that the continents were once united into a single supercontinent named Pangaea, meaning "all earth" in ancient Greek. He proposed that Pangaea broke up long ago and that the continents then moved to their current positions/05%3A_Plate_Tectonics/5.05%3A_Continental_Drift).

The theory of continental drift was initially rejected by most geologists, but over the next decades, other scientists brought forth more evidence for the theory, such as the presence of identical plant fossils in North American and European coal deposits. Today, the theory of continental drift has been replaced by the science of plate tectonics, which studies the movement of the continents as they ride on plates of the Earths lithosphere.

Some key evidence for continental drift includes:

• Identical rocks, of the same type and age, are found on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean/05%3A_Plate_Tectonics/5.05%3A_Continental_Drift).
• The distribution of ancient fossils, rocks, and mountain ranges/05%3A_Plate_Tectonics/5.05%3A_Continental_Drift).
• The locations of ancient glaciation.
• The fit of the continents/05%3A_Plate_Tectonics/5.05%3A_Continental_Drift).

Continental drift is an important concept in the field of geology, as it helps explain the formation of the Earths continents and the geological processes that have shaped our planet over time.