Henri-François-Émile Termier

Henri-François-Émile Termier (born Dec. 13, 1897, Lyon, France—died Aug. 12, 1989, Gif sur Yvette, France) was a French geologist known for his studies of the stratigraphy (study of stratified rocks) and paleontology of North Africa and France.

Termier was a geologist for the Morocco Mine Service from 1925 until 1940, when he became head of the Morocco Geological Service; in 1945 he became a professor at the University of Algiers and in 1955 joined the Sorbonne, where he became the chairman of the department of geology in 1961. Termier wrote a number of books on his observations and findings including Études géologiques sur le Maroc central et le Moyen Atlas septentrional (1936; “Geological Studies of Central Morocco and the Northern Middle Atlas Mountains”), Paléontologie marocaine (1947–50; “Moroccan Paleontology”), Traité de géologie (1952–56; “Treatise on Geology”), Traité de stratigraphie (1964; “Treatise on Stratigraphy”), Biologie des premiers fossiles (1968; “Biology of the First Fossils”), Les Animaux préhistoriques (1977; “Prehistoric Animals”), and Histoire de la Terre (1979; “History of the Earth”). For his fundamental research Termier was named a chevalier in the Legion of Honour and was awarded the Croix de Guerre in 1978.