Etymology
The name Dominica comes from the Latin word for Sunday, which was the day on which it was spotted by Christopher Columbus. Its pre-Columbian name was “Wai‘tu kubuli”, which means “Tall is her body”. The indigenous people of the island, the Caribs, have the Carib Territory, a territory similar to the Indian reserves of North America. The official language is English in consequence of its history as a British colony, territory, and state, though a French creole is spoken by many, especially people of older generations. The demonym or adjective is "Dominican" in English, with the syllable stress being on the second "i" serving to distinguish it from same word used in reference to Dominican Republic, in which case the stress is on the first "i".
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Famous quotes containing the word etymology:
“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
—Giambattista Vico (1688–1744)
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