Cayos
/ˈkaɪ.oʊz/noun
Plural of cayo, meaning small, low island or coral islet, especially in the Caribbean.
Did you know?The English word ultimately preserves a Taíno term encountered by Spanish colonizers, making it one of the everyday geographic traces of pre-Columbian Caribbean languages.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-16th Century
Taíno
kayo
“Small island or low reef island; the precise original form is reconstructed from Caribbean usage.”
16th Century
Spanish
cayo
“Small, low island or islet, adopted into Spanish during Caribbean exploration and colonization.”
17th Century
English
cay
“A small, low island or reef, especially in the Caribbean or near coral waters.”
Modern English
English
cayos
“A plural form of cayo, used for multiple Caribbean islets and in geographic names.”