Lagoon

A lagoon is a body of comparatively shallow salt water separated from the deeper sea by a shallow or exposed sandbank, coral reef, or similar feature. Thus, the enclosed body of water behind a barrier reef or enclosed by an atoll reef is called a lagoon. This application of lagoon in English dates from 1769. It adapted and extended the sense of the Venetian laguna (cf Latin lacuna, 'empty space'), which specifically referred to Venice's shallow, island-studded stretch of salt water, protected from the Adriatic by the barrier beaches of the Lido (see Venetian Lagoon).

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On the Mid-Atlantic Coast of the United States, such lagoons enclosed by barrier islands retain the more traditional designation sounds. Albemarle Sound and Pamlico Sound might more accurately be termed "lagoons". Though Long Island Sound is a true sound, Great South Bay, between Long Island and the barrier beaches of Fire Island, is actually a lagoon.

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On the Pacific side of the North American continent, particularly in northern California, there occur scattered, protected and picturesque lagoons.

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Salt water: For information on water from a sea or ocean, see sea water....

Sea: A sea is a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, or a large, usually saline, lake that lacks a natural outlet such as the Caspian Sea and the Dead Sea. The Sea of Galilee is a small freshwater lake without a natural outlet, but the term was applied to it anyway. The term is used col...

Sandbank: A sandbank is a patch of sand in water, which creates a shallow area which may pose a hazard to boats. Some sandbanks are above water at low tide. See also shoal and bar....

Lagoon related Images and Photos (experimental)

Lost Lagoon	Sunset Lagoon	Paradise Lagoon	Tropical Lagoon
Tropical Lagoon II	Lagoon at Daybreak	Aitutaki Lagoon Cook Islands	The Blue Lagoon
Lagoon in the Garden of Versailles	Paradise Lagoon (aka The Admirable Crichton)	Blue Lagoon Resort Beach Weno Centre Micronesia	Crab in a Lagoon La Jolla CA