Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web

pocosin

 - 2 dictionary results

po⋅co⋅sin

[puh-koh-suhn, poh-kuh-suhn]
–noun Southeastern U.S.
a swamp or marsh in an upland coastal region.
Also, po⋅co⋅son, po⋅co⋅sen.


Origin:
1625–35, Americanism; prob. < an unattested form in a southern Eastern Algonquian language
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To pocosin
po·co·sin   (pə-kō'sĭn)   
n.   Chiefly South Atlantic U.S.
A swamp in an upland coastal region. Also called regionally dismal.

[Possibly of Virginia Algonquian origin.]
In coastal Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and the Carolinas, a swamp or marsh can be called a pocosin or a dismal, the second term illustrated in the name of the Dismal Swamp on the border of North Carolina and Virginia. The word pocosin possibly comes from Virginia Algonquian. The early settlers used pocosin as a designation for low swampy ground, especially a wooded swamp.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see pocosin on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us: