East Indies
1
5.0
- proper noun
- Archaic
:
Indias Orientales
- By 1938, Belawan had become the leading port of the Netherlands East Indies by cargo value and third in cargo tonnage.
- Dutch East Indies
- Netherlands East Indies
- East Indies society
Was it E let me say W to go to the East Indies?
- Was it E let me say W to go to the East Indies?
Examples
-
Right after World War II, Dutch conscripts made up the bulk of an expeditionary force to be deployed in the East Indies, and to legitimize this policy, the Dutch parliament implemented a constitutional change in 1946.
Academic text (1997) -
Many spices, such as cloves and nutmeg, were sourced from the East Indies in the past.
-
We served in the East Indies.
-
- You've been to the East Indies?
-
I sail for the East Indies on tomorrow's tide.
-
They would trade around the East Indies between the Indian mainland and what's now Indonesia, and then bring products back to Britain.
-
The Spanish had explored the East Indies throughout the 16th century and founded a permanent settlement at St. Augustine, Florida, in 1565.
Academic text (2007) -
The preceding report, for instance, came from Batavia (now Jakarta), the commercial and political center of the Dutch East Indies.
Academic text (1997) -
The British established trade routes to the East Indies during the 17th century.
-
The explorers sailed across the seas to reach the East Indies, seeking new opportunities.
Synonyms
2
4.9
An old name for the islands between Asia and Australia, like the Malay Archipelago
A group of islands in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia and the Philippines, between Asia and Australia
Surface Forms
Morphology
East + Indies
The phrase 'East Indies' is a straightforward composition: 'East' (a direction) modifies 'Indies' (the lands/archipelago historically called the Indies), so the meaning 'the eastern part of the Indies / islands between Asia and Australia' is directly derivable from the parts. This directional + place-naming pattern is cross-linguistically common (e.g. French 'Indes orientales', Spanish 'Indias Orientales'), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily understand the referent.
Etymology
East Indies comes from European explorers who called the spice-rich islands the Indies, and they added East to show these islands were far to the east of Europe. That's why today East Indies refers to the group of islands between Asia and Australia.