The Sargasso Sea is a part of the Atlantic Ocean bordered entirely by ocean currents. It's the only sea that never touches land. It is usually oval-shaped, but can rotate and even change shape at times.
Who considers it an actual sea?
The Sargasso Sea is a part of the Atlantic Ocean bordered entirely by ocean currents. It's the only sea that never touches land. It is usually oval-shaped, but can rotate and even change shape at times.
Who considers it an actual sea?
Well, reading this I realised I'm not sure what the definition of sea actually is.
So I decided to do a little research.
Dictionary:
sea |sē|
noun (often
the sea)
the expanse of salt water that covers most of the earth's surface and surrounds its landmasses:
a ban on dumping radioactive wastes in the sea |
rocky bays lapped by vivid blue sea | [as adj.]
a sea view.
- [often in place names] a roughly definable area of this: the Black Sea.
- [in place names] a large lake: the Sea of Galilea.
- used to refer to waves as opposed to calm sea: there was still some sea running.
- (seas) large waves: the lifeboat met seas of thirty-five feet head-on.
- figurative a vast expanse or quantity of something; she scanned the sea of faces for Stephen.
I think that the Sargasso Sea fits the definition of the first bullet-point.
The Saragasso Sea was named by Christopher Columbus, because of the seaweed saragassum which gives it the brown colour.
You can see by the name West India, that Columbus' names weren't very exact (Even if it was India, it would be East India, not West (that shows that people that days weren't too familiar with the idea that earth is a globe))
I heard it's actually a gyre.
Still, it's very intriguing.
from sea to shining sea (probably bullet point 3)- maybe surf at beach
I do know it's saltier than most seas, and it's got a lot of seaweed.
Or we could rely on internet magic:
Hoo-ah!
So yeah, according to wikipedia, it is. There is a specific definition for sea, but I'm not sure if it's on wikipedia...
Oh dear, I started on wikipedia, looks like I'm going to be here a while...
Oh dear, I started on wikipedia, looks like I'm going to be here a while...
Wikipedia sucks my brain in and will not let it go for several hours.
Mmmmm....squiiisshhyyy...
I think that the root word comes from a Germanic word for
lake. For example in Germany there is a land-locked inland lake called BodenSee. There are other "sees" as well, though I can't recall their names.
In English the word sea seems to have been used earlier in history such as in the naming of the Mediteranean {Middle Earth Sea or Mare Terra}
Sea, while the Indian
Ocean was named later. Some lakes such as the Aral
Sea are also called a sea. Perhaps I am wrong and the word Ocean was used to designate a larger body of water.
Of course I've been known to cling to bunk-knowledge before, so tell me if I'm wrong
