The Carboniferous was the geological period after the Devonian and before the Permian. It lasted from about 359 to about 299 million years ago. In the U.S.A. the Carboniferous is divided into the Mississippian (lower part, 359–323.2 mya) and the Pennsylvanian (upper part, 323.2–299 mya). In Europe the terms lower, middle and upper are used.

The Carboniferous was a time of active mountain-building as the supercontinent Pangaea came together. The southern continents remained tied together in the supercontinent Gondwana, which collided with North America–Europe ( Laurussia) along the present line of eastern North America.