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Environment
tombolo
[t?m’b?-l?’]
Definition:
A narrow piece of land made of sediment such as sand or gravel that connects an island to the mainland or another island.
Origin:
Late eighteenth-century Italian tombolo for sand dune; from Latin tumulus meaning “hillock, mound.”
Example:
Frank Island near Tofino, British Columbia, is a good example of a tombolo. The rocky island is connected to the mainland by a large sandbar, which forms part of Chesterman Beach, a popular destination among locals. An island attached to the mainland by a tombolo is known as a tied island. Several islands connected by tombolos are called a tombolo cluster. Two or more can form a lagoon.
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