Main Entry: Mad·a·gas·car

Pronunciation: \ˌma-də-ˈgas-kər, -kär\

Function: geographical name

island W Indian Ocean off SE Africa; formerly a French territory; became (1958) a republic of the French Community as the Mal·a·gasy Republic \ˌma-lə-ˈga-sē\ or French Ré·pu·blique Mal·gache \rā-pue-ˈblēk-mäl-ˈgäsh\ ; name changed to Madagascar 1975 ∗ Antananarivo area 226,657 square miles (589,308 square kilometers), population 16,694,272

— Mad·a·gas·can \ˌma-də-ˈgas-kən\ adjective or noun