Lucayan Archipelago

The Lucayan Archipelago, also known as the Bahamian Archipelago, is an island group comprising the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and the British Overseas Territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands. The archipelago is in the western North Atlantic Ocean, north of Cuba and the other Antillean Islands, and east and south-east of Florida.

William Keegan writes: "Modern political considerations aside, the islands form a single archipelago with common geological, ecological, and cultural roots." Though part of the West Indies, the Lucayan Archipelago is not located on the Caribbean Sea.

Countries and territories

 * The Bahamas
 * Turks and Caicos Islands (United Kingdom)

The Mouchoir Bank, the Silver Bank, and the Navidad Bank are a submerged continuation of the archipelago, to the southeast of the Turks and Caicos Islands. Mouchoir Bank is disputed between the Turks and Caicos Islands and Dominican Republic; Silver Bank and Navidad Bank are part of the Dominican Republic.

Etymologies of island names
The Lucayan Archipelago was named for the original native Lucayan people. Julian Granberry and Gary Vescelius suggest the following Lucayan (Taíno) etymologies for various Lucayan islands.