An island /ˈaɪlənd/ or isle /ˈaɪl/ is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or an island in a lake may be called an eyot /ˈaɪ.ət/ (also ait /ˈeɪt/), or holm. A grouping of geographically or geologically related islands is called an archipelago.
An island may still be described as such despite the presence of an artificial land bridge, for example Singapore and its causeway, or the various Dutch delta islands, such as IJsselmonde. Some places may even retain "island" in their names for historical reasons after being connected to a larger landmass by a wide land bridge, such as Coney Island. Conversely, when a piece of land is separated from the mainland by a man-made canal, for example the Peloponnese by the Corinth Canal, it is generally not considered an island.
There are two main types of islands: continental islands and oceanic islands. There are also artificial islands.
Read more about Island: Etymology, Size, Difference Between Islands and Continents, Natural Vs Artificial Islands
Other articles related to "island, islands":
... Hispaniola (Spanish La Española Haitian Creole Ispayola) is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti ... The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt ... It is the ninth-most-populous island in the world, and the most populous in the Americas ...
... Most of the Earth's islands are natural and have been formed by tectonic forces or volcanic eruptions ... However, there are also artificial or man-made islands ... An example of an artificial island is an island in Osaka Bay off the Japanese island of Honshu, on which Kansai International Airport is located ...
... Achill Island Ashford Castle Ballindine Ballintubber Abbey Blacksod Lighthouse Broadhaven Bay Burrishoole Abbey Céide Fields Clare Island Clew Bay Croagh Patrick Eagle Island lighthouse ...
... of Canada, the northeastern United States, Norway, Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Ireland, Great Britain, France, and northern Spain ... For their nesting colonies the Great Auks required rocky islands with sloping shorelines that provided access to the seashore ... Only six breeding colonies are known Papa Westray in the Orkney Islands, St ...
... is Enniskillen (Inis Ceithleann, 'Ceithleann's island') ... The island town hosts a range of attractions including the Castle Coole Estate and Enniskillen Castle, which is home to the museum of The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers and the ... outside Enniskillen include Belleek Pottery Castle Archdale Crom Estate Devenish Island Florence Court Lough Navar Forest Park Marble Arch Caves ...
Famous quotes containing the word island:
“The very best place to be in all the world is St. Mary’s parish, Jamaica. And the best spot in St. Mary’s is Port Maria, though all of St. Mary’s is fine. Old Maker put himself to a lot of trouble to make that part of the island of Jamaica, for everything there is perfect.”
—Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960)
“Know that, on the right hand of the Indies, there is an island called California, very near to the Terrestrial Paradise, which was peopled with black women.... Their arms were all of gold.”
—For the State of California, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)
“I suggested to them also the great desirability of a general knowledge on the Island of the English language. They are under an English speaking government and are a part of the territory of an English speaking nation.... While I appreciated the desirability of maintaining their grasp on the Spanish language, the beauty of that language and the richness of its literature, that as a practical matter for them it was quite necessary to have a good comprehension of English.”
—Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)