The term sinkhole as a description of a geological phenomenon dates back to the late eighteenth century, though the word first occurred a couple of hundred years earlier in reference to a ‘sewage pit’. Sinkholes are also sometimes alternatively known as swallow holes, swallets, shake holes or dolines, though the latter usually refers to a shallower, more funnel-shaped cavity (the word comes from the Russian dolina, meaning ‘valley’).

The term sinkhole as a description of a geological phenomenon dates back to the late eighteenth century, though the word first occurred a couple of hundred years earlier in reference to a ‘sewage pit’. Sinkholes are also sometimes alternatively known as swallow holes, swallets, shake holes or dolines, though the latter usually refers to a shallower, more funnel-shaped cavity (the word comes from the Russian dolina, meaning ‘valley’).