Turtle Island most commonly refers to North America in Indigenous creation stories, particularly among Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples, where the continent is depicted as the back of a giant turtle emerging from water.
Physical Islands
Several real-world locations bear this name due to their turtle-like shapes.
- Lake Erie, USA : A 1.5-acre island straddling the Michigan-Ohio border, about 5 miles northeast of the Maumee River mouth, with ruins of a 19th-century lighthouse.
- Guishan Island, Taiwan : An uninhabited volcanic island off Yilan County's coast, accessible by boat from Wushi Harbour, known for diverse wildlife.
- Florida, USA : A wildlife-rich area in the Everglades near Naples, east of Goodland and Marco Island, famous for sea turtle nesting.
Other Contexts
The term also describes a preserve in a remote valley focused on traditional skills. Fictional or game references, like in Fortnite, exist but are unrelated to geography.
