Aegean

[ ih-jee-uhn ]

adjective

1. pertaining to the Aegean Sea or Aegean Islands.
2. pertaining to or denoting the prehistoric civilization that preceded the historic Hellenic period and flourished on the various islands and nearby regions of the Aegean Sea, as at Crete and Argolis.

noun

1. the Aegean. Aegean Sea.

Aegean

/ iːˈdʒiːən /

adjective

1. of or relating to the Aegean Sea or Islands
2. of or relating to the Bronze Age civilization of Greece, Asia Minor, and the Aegean Islands

Word History and Origins

Origin of Aegean¹

First recorded in 1510–20; from Latin Aegae(us) or directly from Greek Aigaîos + -an

Example Sentences

In March this year, he was among 22 people killed after the rubber dinghy they were in sank in the Aegean sea near Canakkale in Turkey, as they attempted to get to Greece.

From BBC

Scattered along the coast of the Levant were the great Canaanite commercial centers, which dispensed strategic and utilitarian raw materials and manufactured goods to the Aegean region and beyond.

From New York Times

Turkey, meanwhile, criticized a Greek plan unveiled last month for “marine parks” in parts of the Ionian and Aegean Seas.

From Seattle Times

Disagreements have brought Athens and Ankara close to war on several occasions over the past five decades, mostly over maritime borders and the rights to explore for resources in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean seas.

From Seattle Times

The Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey commanded the entrance to the heavily fortified Dardanelles, the narrow waterway connecting the Aegean Sea with the Black Sea and Russia beyond.

From Literature