Conanicut Island

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English

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Etymology

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From Narragansett, said to be named after chief Canonicus.[1] The name Canonicus is in turn a Latinization of Qunnouone,[2] which has been said to be from *qunni (long, tall).[3][4] The ending -ut indicates the locative.[5] Some sources directly translate Conanicut as "long place".

Proper noun

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Conanicut Island

  1. An island in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, United States, comprising the populated part of Jamestown.

References

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  1. ^ J. R. Cole (1888) “Town of Jamestown”, in Richard Mather Bayles, editor, History of Newport County, Rhode Island, New York: L. E. Preston & Co., →OCLC, page 723
  2. ^ James D. Knowles (1834) Memoir of Roger Williams, Boston: Lincoln, Edmands, & Co., →OCLC, page 307, quoting a 1659 deed, possibly by William Harris
  3. ^ Frederick J. Dockstader (1977) “Canonicus”, in Great North American Indians, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, →ISBN, page 49
  4. ^ James Hammond Trumbull (1903) “qunni”, in Natick Dictionary, Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 140
  5. ^ William O. Bright (2004) “Conanicut Island”, in Native American Placenames of the United States, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, →ISBN, page 116