from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Archipelago \Ar`chi*pel"a*go\, n.; pl. {-goes} or {-gos}. [It.
arcipelago, properly, chief sea; Gr. pref ? + ? sea, perh.
akin to ? blow, and expressing the beating of the waves. See
{Plague}.]
[1913 Webster]
1. The Grecian Archipelago, or [AE]gean Sea, separating
Greece from Asia Minor. It is studded with a vast number
of small islands.
[1913 Webster]
2. Hence: Any sea or broad sheet of water interspersed with
many islands or with a group of islands.
[1913 Webster]