From Latin lignum 'wood' via French, naming the coal that still shows its wooden origin.
A soft brownish-black coal in which the texture of the original wood is still visible, intermediate between peat and bituminous coal.
From French lignite, from Latin lignum 'wood' + French -ite (mineral suffix). Named because this low-rank coal still retains visible wood grain and texture—it is literally 'wood-stone.' Lignite forms from peat that has been compressed over millions of years