An
archipelago () is a chain or cluster of
islands that are formed
tectonically. The word
archipelago is directly derived from the
Greek arkhon (
arkhi-) ("main" - and so "leader" in "monarchy" for example) and
pelagos ("sea"). In Italian, possibly following a tradition of
antiquity, the
Archipelago (Greek: Αρχιπέλαγος) was the proper name for the
Aegean Sea and, later, usage shifted to refer to the
Aegean Islands (since the sea is remarkable for its large number of islands). It is now used to generally refer to any
island group or, sometimes, to a sea containing a large number of scattered islands like the
Aegean Sea.
Types of archipelagos
Archipelagos are usually found in the open sea; less commonly, a large
land mass may neighbour them. For example,
Scotland has more than 700 islands surrounding its mainland. Archipelagos are often
volcanic, forming along
island arcs generated by subduction zones or
hotspots, but there are many other processes involved in their construction, including
erosion,
deposition, and
land elevation.
The five largest modern countries that are mainly archipelagos are
Japan, the
Philippines,
New Zealand, the
United Kingdom and
Indonesia. The largest archipelago in the world by size is Indonesia (according to the
CIA World Factbook). The archipelago with the most islands is the
Archipelago Sea in
Finland, but these islands are generally small.
See also
