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Glite Dictionary
Dawson City

Dawson City

1 6.8
A town in northwestern Yukon, Canada that grew quickly during the Klondike Gold Rush and has many old buildings
  • proper noun
: Dawson City
  • Many tourists visit Dawson City each year to learn about its gold rush heritage.

Examples

  • During the Klondike Gold Rush, Dawson City grew rapidly as prospectors flocked to the area.

  • I visited Dawson City last summer.

  • The historic buildings of Dawson City have been carefully preserved as a reminder of its colorful past.

  • Have you ever been to Dawson City?

  • During the Klondike Gold Rush, thousands of prospectors flocked to Dawson City in search of fortune.

  • In Dawson City, visitors can explore the history of the gold rush through various museums and preserved sites.

  • The annual festival in Dawson City celebrates the town's rich heritage and its role in Canada's gold rush history.

Surface Forms

Dawson City main

Morphology

Dawson + city

A learner who knows 'city' and recognizes 'Dawson' as a proper name can transparently infer this denotes a city or town called Dawson, because the 'X City' pattern is compositionally clear. However, the specific information in the definition (its location in Yukon and role in the Klondike Gold Rush) is world knowledge tied to this particular toponym and is not derivable from the constituents, so the expression is only partially predictable.

Etymology

Dawson City was named after the geologist George M. Dawson, whose name was on early maps of the area. When gold was found in the Klondike, thousands of gold seekers followed those maps and built a town called Dawson City, so today it is remembered as the center of the 'Klondike Gold Rush'.