a transliteration of the Modern Greek name for the Dodecanese
Dodecanese in British English
(ˌdəʊdɪkəˈniːz)
plural noun
a group of islands in the SE Aegean Sea, forming a department of Greece: part of the Southern Sporades. Capital: Rhodes. Pop: 190 071 (2001). Area: 2663 sq km (1028 sq miles)