What is "paragonite"

Paragonite \Pa*rag"o*nite\, n. [From Gr. ?, p. pr. of ? to mislead.] (Min.) A kind of mica related to muscovite, but containing soda instead of potash. It is characteristic of the paragonite schist of the Alps.

n. (context mineralogy English) A mineral related to muscovite.

n. a colorless or pale brown mica with sodium

Paragonite, also known as Natron-Glimmer, is a mineral, related to muscovite. Its empirical formula is Na Al[(O H)|Al Si O]. A wide solvus separates muscovite from paragonite, such that there is little solid solution along the vector Na K and apparent micas of intermediate composition is most commonly a microscopic (or even sub-microscopic) intergrowth of two distinct micas, one rich in K, and the other in Na. Paragonite is a common mineral in rocks metamorphosed under blueschist facies conditions along with other sodic minerals such as albite, jadeite and glaucophane. During the transition from blueschist to greenschist facies, paragonite and glaucophane are transformed into chlorite and albite.

It was first described in 1843 for an occurrence at Mt. Campione, Tessin, Switzerland. The name derives from the Greek, paragon, for misleading, due to its similar appearance to talc.