Dolomite is produced by dolomitization, a diagenetic process in which the calcium carbonate minerals aragonite and calcite are recrystallized and converted into the mineral dolomite. Dolomitization can obscure or even obliterate all or part of the original limestone textures and structures; in the case where such original features survive, carbonate nomenclature and interpretation can still be applied to the rock with emphasis on the effects of alteration.

The exact processes by which limestones are dolomitized are not thoroughly understood, but dolomites occur widely in the geologic record. The relative proportion of dolomite to limestone progressively increases with age in carbonate rocks. This secular trend probably either reflects the earlier existence of geochemical settings that were more favourable to dolomitization or is the logical result of the fact that the likelihood for a limestone to undergo dolomitization increases proportionally with its age.