Curaçao

• Curacao

Borrowed from Portuguese Curação, literally meaning “curing” but likely a Portuguese pronunciation of a native Arawak self-designation.

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈkjuːɹəsaʊ/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌkuːɹəˈsaʊ/

Curaçao

1. An island in the southern part of the Caribbean Sea off the west coast of Venezuela, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

• Curaçaoan

• Curaçao on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

• curacoa, curaçoa

Borrowed from Spanish Curaçao. Potentially derived from the self-designation of the island's native inhabitants. An undocumented yet persistent folk etymology holds that the name of the island derives from Portuguese coração (“heart”) (as a reference to the island's importance in trade networks) or curação (“healing, recovery”) (as a reference to the island being used as a sanatorium for ill sailors).

• IPA^(key): /kyːraːˈsʌu/, /kuːraːˈsʌu/
• (Limburg) IPA^(key): /kyːraːˈzaʊ̯/
• Hyphenation: Cu‧ra‧çao

Curaçao n

1. An island and constituent country of the Netherlands.

Borrowed from Dutch Curaçao.

• IPA^(key): /ky.ʁa.so/
• Homophone: curaçao

Curaçao m

1. Curaçao (an island and constituent country of the Netherlands).

From Dutch Curaçao, from Portuguese coração (“heart”) or curação (“healing, recovery”).

• IPA^(key): /ky.raˈsaʊ̯/, /ky.raˈsaː.o/

• Audio

  (file)

Curaçao n (proper noun, genitive Curaçaos or (optionally with an article) Curaçao)

1. Curaçao (an island and constituent country of the Netherlands)

Curaçao m (strong, genitive Curaçaos or Curaçao, plural Curaçaos or Curaçao)

1. curaçao (liqueur)

From Portuguese curação ("cure" or "medical recovery").

Portuguese sailors who were ill were left at the island now known as Curaçao. When their ship returned, they had recovered, likely cured from scurvy, probably after eating fruit with vitamin C. From then on the Portuguese referred to this as Ilha da Curação (Island of Healing).

Another explanation is that it is derived from the Portuguese word for heart (coração), referring to the island as a centre in trade.

Doublet of Kòrsou

Curaçao

1. Curaçao

   Synonym: Kòrsou

Borrowed from Dutch Curaçao, from Portuguese curação.

• IPA^(key): /kju.raˈsa.ɔ/
• Rhymes: -aɔ
• Syllabification: Cu‧ra‧ça‧o

Curaçao n (indeclinable)

1. Curaçao (island)

• Curaçao in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• Curaçao in Polish dictionaries at PWN