Asia Minor
/ˌeɪʒə ˈmaɪnər/noun
The historic name for the Anatolian peninsula in western Asia, roughly modern-day Turkey.
Did you know?The phrase is a Latin geographical distinction, not a mystical title: Roman writers used it to separate Anatolia from “Asia Maior,” and the name later became a key term in Byzantine and Ottoman-era history.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
Asía
“A geographic name for a region in western Anatolia, later expanded to mean a much larger landmass”
Classical Latin
Latin
Asia
“The Roman name for the eastern provinces and the Anatolian region”
Late Latin
Latin
Asia Minor
“Literally “Lesser Asia,” distinguishing Anatolia from the larger continental Asia”
Medieval English
English
Asia Minor
“The standard learned name for the Anatolian peninsula”
Modern English
English
Asia Minor
“A historical term for the Anatolian peninsula, especially in older historical and geographical writing”
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