Date of Award
2026
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Marine Affairs
Department
Marine Affairs
First Advisor
Mateja Nenadovic
Abstract
Fishermen in Southern New England (SNE) utilize a wide variety of placenames to delineate areas of significance on the open ocean. This information provides new revelations not just about the way fishermen navigate the ocean, but also insight about overlaps between Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) and Fishermen’s Ecological Knowledge in the historically prolific fishing sector of Southern New England. Prior to this study, this collection of vernacular place names on the water, or folk-hydronymy, had never been documented or analyzed, as it was held almost entirely in cognitive maps and proliferated through communication with other fishermen. This project’s goal was to map the folk-hydronymy of fishermen working in Southern New England, explore the role of narrative in preserving hydronym history, and assess the relationship between place naming and FEK. A total of 113 unique hydronyms were mapped, categorized and analyzed, revealing a large quantity of Descriptive and Associative place names and the use of vernacular and storytelling to transfer FEK between and amongst generations. In addition to the informally held nature of this dataset, external factors like graying of the fleet, advancements in navigational technology and changes in bathymetric contours on nautical charts all threaten to disrupt the proliferation of folk-hydronymy in SNE.
Recommended Citation
Gilmore, Amanda, "BETWEEN A ROCKPILE AND A HARD PLACE: MAPPING THE FOLK-HYDRONYMY OF SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND" (2026). Open Access Master's Theses. Paper 2731.
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/theses/2731