Celebes

American  

[sel-uh-beez, suh-lee-beez, se-ley-bes] / ˈsɛl əˌbiz, səˈli biz, sɛˈleɪ bɛs /

noun

1. former name of Sulawesi.

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Celebes British  

/ ˈsɛlɪbiːz, sɛˈliːbɪz /

noun

1. the English name for Sulawesi

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Other Word Forms

• Celebesian adjective

Example Sentences

I once struck up a conversation with Will Shortz, back when his email address had to do with “Celebes ox.”

From Washington Post

The city of 120,000 people is connected to the provincial capital, Manado, by a winding two-lane mountain road with commanding views of the Celebes Sea.

From Los Angeles Times

Sulawesi Island, once known as the Celebes, has 18 million residents spread over six provinces in an area that’s roughly the size of Florida.

From Salon

For example, the decorated Ta-p’en-k’eng pottery on Taiwan gave way to undecorated plain or red pottery, which has also been found at sites in the Philippines and on the Indonesian islands of Celebes and Timor.

From Literature

The Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia plan to police the Sulu and Celebes Seas, a vast area prone to piracy and kidnappings.

From The Wall Street Journal