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History vocabulary · Archaeology Basics

Terminus post quem

Meaning in history, with examples

nounAdvanced term

In history, terminus post quem means: A chronological limit before which an event or deposit cannot have occurred.

In Turkish: en erken mümkün tarih, sonrasına tarihleme sınırı

How it is used

Often abbreviated TPQ; it provides a lower date limit, not the exact date of the event.

Example sentences

  1. A coin minted in 1680 provided a terminus post quem for the sealed deposit.

    The deposit cannot predate the manufacture of an included object.

  2. The letter, written before the author left home, gives a terminus post quem for her arrival abroad.

    Her arrival must follow this dated record of her presence at home.

Common collocations

  • establish a terminus post quem
  • a secure terminus post quem
  • chronologyThe order in which events happened, or a list or table that sets out events and their dates in that order.
  • stratigraphyThe study of the layers of soil and debris at a site, based on the principle that lower layers were usually laid down before the ones above them.

More terms: Archaeology Basics

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