Hello,

The word "Continental" originally referred to mainland Europe. How did its use in terms such as the "Continental Congress" appear? On what basis did they use the term "Continental" to refer to the American colonies?

Continental is a reference used in relationship to all continents. The usage for the American colonies is that it covered most of the English colonies in North America.

It never meant "Europe" and nothing else. Today and in the past it has been used to refer to continental Europe as opposed to the British Isles or Iceland (much in the way Americans speak of the "continental United States."

An etymology can be found here:

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=continent

One can only hope that the founders did not mean to use the word in its senses of "chaste" or "exercising bowel and bladder control."

OK. thanks. So it seems that you're saying that they used it to distinguish the American Congress from the British parliament. This still seems to me a somewhat strange usage.

OK. thanks. So it seems that you're saying that they used it to distinguish the American Congress from the British parliament. This still seems to me a somewhat strange usage.

Well...they were not distinguishing themselves from Parliament. A "Congress" was just a gathering of delegates, and a "Continental Congress" is a gathering a delegates from across a continent. I suspect they were using it to suggest that their cause was bigger than it truly was, much like America today has the "World Series" and it only includes teams from America and Canada. That siad, the early delegates did often figure that Canada would eventually throw off the yoke and join us. The Articles of Confederaation has a special provision dedicated to Canada joining the union.

It was a little bit of bluster, but the "continent" to which they were referring was North America (or at least the Engllish speaking portion).

Thanks.