English

Proper noun

Chersonese

1. (historical, usually with "the") The Gallipoli Peninsula.

Latin

Noun

Chersonēse

1. vocative singular of Chersonēsus

English

Alternative forms

Noun

chersonese ‎(plural chersoneses)

1. (geography, uncommon) A peninsula.^[1][2]

Usage notes

Aside from dated, poetic, or rhetorical use,^[2] the word typically appears in English transcribing works or descriptions of classical geography: the Greek form chersonese being more common in general and generic use and the Latin form chersonesus appearing in the proper names of various famous peninsulas.

Derived terms

• See chersonesus
• Thracian Chersonese (Gallipoli)

References

1. 1 2 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 isthmus¹⁰) as the Isthmus of Corinth, the Isthmus of Suez, and the Isthmus of Darien.
2. 1 2 3 4 Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. “chersonese, n.”. Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1989.