An island in the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. It is chiefly of coral formation with no good harbors and only small streams. It was probably discovered by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century. The name was given by 16th-century Spanish explorers from barbados, the plural for "bearded", with reference to the beard-like leaves or trails of moss on the trees that grew there in abundance. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p116 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p49)

Synonyms: Barbados