Chersonese

Pronunciation

• RP IPA: /ˈkɜːsəˌniːs/

Alternative forms

Origin

From Latin Chersonēsus, from Ancient Greek χερσόνησος

A Compendium of Ancient and Modern Geography: For the Use of Eton School‎ by Aaron Arrowsmith (1831; E. Williams), page 32

  A peninsula (χερσόνησος pæninsula, i. e. pæne insula) or chersonese, is a tract of land which is almost an island, being encompassed by water on all sides, expect where it is joined to the main by a narrow neck of land ; as the Thracian Chersonese, the Morea, and Spain. The narrow neck of land, which joins a peninsula to the main, is called an Isthmus (ἰσϑμὸς isthmus

10

) as the Isthmus of Corinth, the Isthmus of Suez, and the Isthmus of Darien.

(“peninsula”, originally specifically the Gallipoli), from χέρσος (khersos, "dry land") + νῆσος (nēsos, "island").

“chersonese” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary 2

nd

1989

Full definition of chersonese

Noun

1. (now chiefly poetic or rhetorical) A peninsula.