Aral Sea

/ˈɑːɹəl siː/

proper noun

A saline lake, straddling the Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan border, that was once large, but shrank to a quarter of its original size after the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, which previously flowed into it, were diverted for irrigation purposes during the Soviet era.

OriginKazakh арал →
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Meanings

proper nounthe Aral Sea
  1. A saline lake, straddling the Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan border, that was once large, but shrank to a quarter of its original size after the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, which previously flowed into it, were diverted for irrigation purposes during the Soviet era.

Origin

  1. Kazakhарал“an island”
  2. EnglishAral Sea

From Kazakh арал (aral, “an island”), referring to the more than 1,500 islands that once dotted its waters.

More words from Kazakh

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Afrikaans Aralmeer
  • AralmeerAral Sea
Arabic بَحْر آرَال
  • بَحْر آرَال (baḥr ʔārāl)Aral Sea
Basque Aral itsasoa
  • Aral itsasoaAral Sea
Bengali আরাল সাগর
  • আরাল সাগর (aral śagor)Aral Sea
Bulgarian Ара́лско мо́ре
  • Ара́лско мо́ре (Arálsko móre)Aral Sea
Catalan llac d'Aral, mar d'Aral
  • llac d'AralAral Sea
  • mar d'AralAral Sea
Chinese Mandarin 鹹海 /咸海
  • 鹹海 /咸海 (Xiánhǎi)Aral Sea
Czech Aralské jezero
  • Aralské jezeroAral Sea
Danish Aralsøen
  • AralsøenAral Sea
Dutch Aralmeer
  • AralmeerAral Sea
Esperanto Aralo, Arala maro
  • AraloAral Sea
  • Arala maroAral Sea
  • Arala lagoAral Sea
  • Aral-lagoAral Sea
Estonian Araali meri
  • Araali meriAral Sea
Finnish Araljärvi
  • AraljärviAral Sea
French mer d'Aral
  • mer d'AralAral Sea
German Aralsee
  • AralseeAral Sea
Greek Αράλη
  • Αράλη (Aráli)Aral Sea
Hebrew ימת אראל
  • ימת אראל (yámat áral)Aral Sea
Hindi अरल सागर
  • अरल सागर (aral sāgar)Aral Sea
Hungarian Aral-tó
  • Aral-tóAral Sea
Icelandic Aralvatn
  • AralvatnAral Sea
Indonesian Laut Aral
  • Laut AralAral Sea
Irish Muir Aral
  • Muir AralAral Sea
Italian Aral, lago d'Aral
  • AralAral Sea
  • lago d'AralAral Sea
Japanese アラル海
  • アラル海 (Araru-kai)Aral Sea
Korean 아랄 해
  • 아랄 해 (Aral hae)Aral Sea
Latin Lacus Oxianus
  • Lacus OxianusAral Sea
Latvian Arāla jūra
  • Arāla jūraAral Sea
Lithuanian Aralo jūra
  • Aralo jūraAral Sea
Malay Laut Aral
  • Laut AralAral Sea
Norwegian Bokmål Aralsjøen
  • AralsjøenAral Sea
Persian دریاچه خوارزم
  • دریاچه خوارزم (daryâče-ye xorazm)Aral Sea
Polish Jezioro Aralskie
  • Jezioro AralskieAral Sea
Portuguese Mar de Aral
  • Mar de AralAral Sea
Punjabi ਅਰਾਲ ਸਮੁੰਦਰ
  • ਅਰਾਲ ਸਮੁੰਦਰ (arāl samundar)Aral Sea
Romanian Marea Aral
  • Marea AralAral Sea
Russian Ара́льское мо́ре
  • Ара́льское мо́ре (Arálʹskoje móre)Aral Sea
Slovak Aralské jazero
  • Aralské jazeroAral Sea
Spanish mar de Aral
  • mar de AralAral Sea
Swedish Aralsjön
  • AralsjönAral Sea
Tamil ஏரல் கடல்
  • ஏரல் கடல் (ēral kaṭal)Aral Sea
Thai ทะเลอารัล
  • ทะเลอารัล (tá-lee aa-ral)Aral Sea
Turkish Aral Gölü
  • Aral GölüAral Sea
Ukrainian Ара́льське мо́ре
  • Ара́льське мо́ре (Arálʹsʹke móre)Aral Sea
Vietnamese biển Aral
  • biển AralAral Sea
Welsh Môr Aral
  • Môr AralAral Sea
Cite this entry
APA

Aral Sea. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Aral%20Sea

MLA

“Aral Sea.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Aral%20Sea. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Aral Sea,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Aral%20Sea.

Source: Aral Sea on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.