Alaska

[uh-las-kuh] /əˈlæs kə/
noun
1.
a state of the United States in NW North America. 586,400 sq. mi. (1,519,000 sq. km).
Capital: Juneau.
Abbreviation: AK (for use with zip code), Alas.
2.
Gulf of, a gulf of the Pacific, on the coast of S Alaska.
Related forms
Alaskan, adjective, noun
pro-Alaskan, adjective, noun
Examples from the web for Alaska
  • He surrenders her to billy, his last remaining companion from Alaska.
  • However, barrow experiences the lowest average temperatures in Alaska.
British Dictionary definitions for Alaska

Alaska

/əˈlæskə/
noun
1.
the largest state of the US, in the extreme northwest of North America: the aboriginal inhabitants are Inuit and Yupik; the earliest White settlements were made by the Russians; it was purchased by the US from Russia in 1867. It is mostly mountainous and volcanic, rising over 6000 m (20 000 ft), with the Yukon basin in the central region; large areas are covered by tundra; it has important mineral resources (chiefly coal, oil, and natural gas). Capital: Juneau. Pop: 648 818 (2003 est). Area: 1 530 694 sq km (591 004 sq miles) Abbreviation Alas, (with zip code) AK
2.
Gulf of Alaska, the N part of the Pacific, between the Alaska Peninsula and the Alexander Archipelago
Word Origin and History for Alaska

name first applied 18c. by Russian explorers, from Aleut alaxsxaq, literally "the object toward which the action of the sea is directed" [Bright]. Baked Alaska attested by 1896, so called either for its whiteness or from being cold inside.

Alaska in Culture

Alaska definition


State in northwesternmost North America bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north; Yukon, Canada, to the east; the Pacific Ocean to the south; and the Bering Sea to the west. Its capital is Juneau, and its largest city is Anchorage.

Note: The forty-ninth state, admitted in 1959, and the largest.