Antillean

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Of or relating to the Caribbean islands known as the Antilles, or their peoples and cultures
2. Pertaining to the Antilles, an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea, including its inhabitants and their characteristics
3. Concerning the Antilles islands in the Caribbean region, or the people, languages, and traditions native to them

Etymology: The Antilles are the islands of the Caribbean, and their name carries a Latin ancestry. Its root is the Latin "Antillae," a name used for islands lying out in the western Atlantic beyond Europe's known shores. The Latin adjective ending "-aeus" passed into English in the form "-ean," and "Antillean" simply pairs the place name with that suffix to mean "of or relating to the Antilles." The suffix itself has a long pathway behind it. The Latin "-ānus" that formed many adjectives from nouns, and which first developed from earlier Italic forms, reached English by way of Old French "-ain," then Middle English "-an." Over time English spelling and pronunciation shifted to "-ean," the form seen here. The same suffix appears in words like "Lutheran" and "European," giving readers a familiar model for how the ending works.

Synonyms: Caribbean