Dictionary:

Bosporus

  (bŏs'pər-əs)

A narrow strait separating European and Asian Turkey and joining the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara. It has been an important trade route since ancient times.

For more information on Bosporus, visit Britannica.com.

Bosporus (‘ox-ford’), sometimes ‘Bosphorus’. 1. The Thracian Bosporus, the strait connecting the Sea of Marmora (Propontis) with the Black Sea, and separating Europe from Asia. According to Greek myth it was here that the heifer Io crossed from one continent to the other (perhaps from Asia to Europe). The strong current and the winding channel made it dangerous to shipping.

2. The Cimmerian Bosporus, the straits connecting the Black Sea with the Sea of Asov. It also is said to derive its name from a crossing made by Io.

Strait separating the European and Asian portions of Turkey. The Bosporus is a link between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.

• It is an important shipping route for Russia, whose northern routes are mostly blocked by ice in winter, and for other nations that border the Black Sea or use any of the many major rivers that flow into it.