Lamarck, Jean Baptiste de
Pronunciation: /laˈmɑːk, lamaʀk/
Definition of Lamarck, Jean Baptiste de
- (1744–1829), French naturalist. He was an early proponent of organic evolution, although his theory is not widely accepted today. He suggested that species could have evolved from each other by small changes in their structure, and that the mechanism of such change (not now generally considered possible) was that characteristics acquired in order to survive could be passed on to offspring.