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Indies

Historical Location
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A historical name for the East or West Indies, especially in older exploration and trade writing.

Detailed Definition
In older English, 'the Indies' could refer broadly to distant eastern lands or to the Caribbean and American colonies, depending on context. Thoreau’s line evokes the age of exploration, trade, and imperial wealth.
Example
Example in poetry:
“No armèd ships unto the Indies send” uses Indies for lands of the East Indies or West Indies in older European usage; “The merchant dreamed of spices from the Indies” reflects historical trade language; “In Shakespearean-era verse, the Indies may signify distant wealth and colonial desire”; “The plural can be geographically imprecise, so readers should consider its historical context
Additional Notes
The quoted line uses a historical geographical name whose reference is not obvious to many modern readers.; Found in the poem, Poverty by Henry David Thoreau
Also Known As
East Indies Spice Islands Orient
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