Lagoon
Encyclopedia
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water
separated from the sea
by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle, or, less frequently, by rocks. Salinity may vary from brackish water to hypersalinity depending on rainfall, evaporation and through the addition of fresh seawater from storms, temporary flooding by the sea in winter or tidal exchange".
The body of comparatively shallow salt or brackish water
is separated from the deeper sea
by a shallow or exposed barrier beach, sandbank
of marine origin, coral reef
, or similar feature. Thus, the enclosed body of water behind a barrier reef
or barrier island
s or enclosed by an atoll
reef is called a lagoon. When used within this context of a distinctive portion of coral reef ecosystems, the term "lagoon" is synonymous with the term "back reef" or "backreef", which is more commonly used by coral reef scientists to refer to the same area.
These applications of lagoon in English
date from 1769. It adapted and extended the sense of the Venetian laguna
(cf Latin lacuna, ‘empty space’), which specifically referred to Venice
’s shallow, island-studded stretch of saltwater, protected from the Adriatic
by the barrier beaches
of the Lido. Lagoon refers to both coastal lagoons formed by the build-up of sandbanks or reefs along shallow coastal waters, and the lagoons in atolls formed by the growth of coral reefs on slowly sinking central islands. Lagoons that are fed by freshwater streams are also called estuaries
.
Many lagoons do not include "lagoon" in their common names. Albemarle Sound
in North Carolina
; Great South Bay
between Long Island and the barrier beaches of Fire Island
in New York
; Isle of Wight Bay
, which separates Ocean City, Maryland
from the rest of Worcester County, Maryland
; Banana River
in Florida
; and Lake Illawarra
in New South Wales
are all lagoons, despite their names. In the UK there are lagoons at Montrose Basin
, (Scotland) and Broad Water
near Tywyn
, (Wales), whilst the expanse of water inside Chesil Beach
, England, known as The Fleet, could also be described as a lagoon. There is also one near the small town of Dingle
in Western Ireland. Some of the lagoons in India
are the Chilika Lake in Orissa
, near Puri
, and the Vembanad Lake
in Kerala. Both are connected to the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea
respectively through a narrow channel. Some other known lagoons like in Africa include the Lagos Lagoon
and the Keta Lagoon in Ghana
.
In Latin America often the use of “laguna”, which lagoon translates to, is used to describe a lake
, such as Laguna Catemaco
.
In pop culture, the movie Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
is a popular monster movie.
Brackish water
Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuaries, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers. The word comes from the Middle Dutch root "brak," meaning "salty"...
separated from the sea
Sea
A sea generally refers to a large body of salt water, but the term is used in other contexts as well. Most commonly, it means a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, and is commonly used as a synonym for ocean...
by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle, or, less frequently, by rocks. Salinity may vary from brackish water to hypersalinity depending on rainfall, evaporation and through the addition of fresh seawater from storms, temporary flooding by the sea in winter or tidal exchange".
Definition
Brackish water
Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuaries, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers. The word comes from the Middle Dutch root "brak," meaning "salty"...
is separated from the deeper sea
Sea
A sea generally refers to a large body of salt water, but the term is used in other contexts as well. Most commonly, it means a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, and is commonly used as a synonym for ocean...
by a shallow or exposed barrier beach, sandbank
Bar (landform)
A shoal, sandbar , or gravelbar is a somewhat linear landform within or extending into a body of water, typically composed of sand, silt or small pebbles. A spit or sandspit is a type of shoal...
of marine origin, coral reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
, or similar feature. Thus, the enclosed body of water behind a barrier reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
or barrier island
Barrier island
Barrier islands, a coastal landform and a type of barrier system, are relatively narrow strips of sand that parallel the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a few islands to more than a dozen...
s or enclosed by an atoll
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
reef is called a lagoon. When used within this context of a distinctive portion of coral reef ecosystems, the term "lagoon" is synonymous with the term "back reef" or "backreef", which is more commonly used by coral reef scientists to refer to the same area.
These applications of lagoon in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
date from 1769. It adapted and extended the sense of the Venetian laguna
Venetian Lagoon
The Venetian Lagoon is the enclosed bay of the Adriatic Sea in which the city of Venice is situated. Its name in the Venetian language, Laguna Veneta— cognate of Latin lacus, "lake"— has provided the international name for an enclosed, shallow embayment of saltwater, a lagoon.The Venetian Lagoon...
(cf Latin lacuna, ‘empty space’), which specifically referred to Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
’s shallow, island-studded stretch of saltwater, protected from the Adriatic
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
by the barrier beaches
Bar (landform)
A shoal, sandbar , or gravelbar is a somewhat linear landform within or extending into a body of water, typically composed of sand, silt or small pebbles. A spit or sandspit is a type of shoal...
of the Lido. Lagoon refers to both coastal lagoons formed by the build-up of sandbanks or reefs along shallow coastal waters, and the lagoons in atolls formed by the growth of coral reefs on slowly sinking central islands. Lagoons that are fed by freshwater streams are also called estuaries
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
.
Many lagoons do not include "lagoon" in their common names. Albemarle Sound
Albemarle Sound
Albemarle Sound is a large estuary on the coast of North Carolina in the United States located at the confluence of a group of rivers, including the Chowan and Roanoke. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Outer Banks, a long barrier peninsula upon which the town of Kitty Hawk is located,...
in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
; Great South Bay
Great South Bay
Great South Bay is a lagoon situated between Long Island and Fire Island, in the State of New York. It is approximately long. It's protected from the Atlantic Ocean by Fire Island, a barrier island, as well as the eastern end of Jones Beach Island and Captree Island.Robert Moses Causeway adjoins...
between Long Island and the barrier beaches of Fire Island
Fire Island, New York
Fire Island is one of the outer barrier islands adjacent to the south shore of Long Island, New York. It is approximately long and varies between broad. Fire Island is part of Suffolk County. It comprises a number of hamlets, census-designated places , and villages, all of which lie within the...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
; Isle of Wight Bay
Isle of Wight Bay
Isle of Wight Bay is a lagoon that separates part of mainland Worcester County, Maryland from the southern part of Ocean City, also in Worcester County. It is crossed by the U.S. Route 50 bridge into Ocean City as well the Maryland Route 90 bridge. The major tributary of Isle of Wight Bay is the...
, which separates Ocean City, Maryland
Ocean City, Maryland
Ocean City, sometimes known as OC, or OCMD, is an Atlantic Ocean resort town in Worcester County, Maryland, United States. Ocean City is widely known in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is a frequent destination for vacationers in that area...
from the rest of Worcester County, Maryland
Worcester County, Maryland
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*82.0% White*13.6% Black*0.3% Native American*1.1% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.7% Two or more races*1.3% Other races*3.2% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
; Banana River
Banana River
The Banana River is a lagoon that lies between Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island in Brevard County, Florida in the United States. It is part of the Indian River Lagoon system, and connects at its south end to the Indian River; it is the only part of the lagoon system not in the Intracoastal...
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
; and Lake Illawarra
Lake Illawarra
Lake Illawarra is a large coastal lagoon located in the city of Wollongong about 100 km south of Sydney, New South Wales.The lake receives runoff from the Illawarra escarpment through Macquarie Rivulet and Mullet Creek, and has a narrow tidal entrance to the sea at Windang...
in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
are all lagoons, despite their names. In the UK there are lagoons at Montrose Basin
Montrose Basin
The Montrose Basin is part of the estuary of the South Esk forming a tidal basin near to the town of Montrose, Angus, on the north-east coast of Scotland....
, (Scotland) and Broad Water
Broad Water
Broad Water, or Broadwater, is a salt water lagoon near Tywyn, Wales, formed from the silted up estuary of the River Dysynni. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the estuary was used by the shipbuilding industry, as small sailing ships were launched to carry peat from the local peat bogs...
near Tywyn
Tywyn
Tywyn is a town and seaside resort on the Cardigan Bay coast of southern Gwynedd , in north Wales. The name derives from the Welsh tywyn and the town is sometimes referred to as Tywyn Meirionnydd...
, (Wales), whilst the expanse of water inside Chesil Beach
Chesil Beach
Chesil Beach, sometimes called Chesil Bank, in Dorset, southern England is one of three major shingle structures in Britain. Its toponym is derived from the Old English ceosel or cisel, meaning "gravel" or "shingle"....
, England, known as The Fleet, could also be described as a lagoon. There is also one near the small town of Dingle
Dingle
Dingle is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about 49 kilometres southwest of Tralee and 71 kilometres northwest of Killarney....
in Western Ireland. Some of the lagoons in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
are the Chilika Lake in Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
, near Puri
Puri
Puri is district headquarter, a city situated about south of state capital Bhubaneswar, on the eastern coast of the Bay of Bengal in the Indian state of Orissa. It is also known as Jagannath Puri after the Jagannath Temple . It is a holy city of the Hindus as a part of the Char Dham pilgrimages...
, and the Vembanad Lake
Vembanad Lake
Vembanad Lake is the longest lake in India, and the largest lake in the state of Kerala. It is also one of the largest lakes, in India. A lake spanning several districts in the state of Kerala, it is known by different names in different localities viz. Punnamada Lake in Kuttanad, Kochi Lake in...
in Kerala. Both are connected to the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
respectively through a narrow channel. Some other known lagoons like in Africa include the Lagos Lagoon
Lagos Lagoon
Lagos Lagoon is a lagoon sharing its name with the city of Lagos, Nigeria, the second largest city in Africa, which lies on its south-western side...
and the Keta Lagoon in Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
.
In Latin America often the use of “laguna”, which lagoon translates to, is used to describe a lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
, such as Laguna Catemaco
Laguna Catemaco
Laguna Catemaco is a freshwater lake located at the center of the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas in south central Veracruz, in east central Mexico. In English the word lagoon generally describes a body of water exposed to the sea. In Mexican Spanish laguna seems to be used to refer to lagoons plus lakes in...
.
In pop culture, the movie Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
Creature from the Black Lagoon
Creature from the Black Lagoon is a 1954 monster horror film directed by Jack Arnold, and starring Richard Carlson, Julia Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, and Whit Bissell. The eponymous creature was played by Ben Chapman on land and Ricou Browning in underwater scenes...
is a popular monster movie.
See also
- List of lagoons by area
- Aerated lagoonAerated lagoonAn aerated lagoon or aerated basin is a holding and/or treatment pond provided with artificial aeration to promote the biological oxidation of wastewaters. There are many other biological processes for treatment of wastewaters, for example activated sludge, trickling filters, rotating biological...
- Anaerobic lagoonAnaerobic lagoonAnaerobic Lagoon or Manure Lagoon is a man made outdoor earthen basin filled with excrement. Lagoons are part of a system designed to manage and treat waste created by Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations . Anaerobic lagoons are created from a manure slurry which is washed out from underneath the...
- Ayre (landform)Ayre (landform)An ayre is a name often applied to shingle beaches in Orkney and Shetland. The term is derived from the Old Norse wordfor a shingle beach - "eyrr" - and may be applied to ordinary beaches, to cliff-foot beaches to spits, bars and tombolos, but only if formed of shingle. It is sometimes wrongly...
- Kerala backwatersKerala BackwatersThe Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state...
- EstuaryEstuaryAn estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....