A narrow strip of land connecting two larger landmasses and separating two bodies of water. Examples include the Isthmus of Panama connecting North and South America.
From Greek 'isthmos' meaning 'neck' or 'narrow passage.' The word has maintained its original meaning since ancient times, reflecting how Greeks visualized these landforms as the 'neck' between larger territories.
The Isthmus of Panama is only 30 miles wide at its narrowest point, yet it completely changed global trade when the Panama Canal was built there! Before this narrow land bridge formed 3 million years ago, the Atlantic and Pacific mixed freely, creating very different ocean conditions.
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