Virgin Queen
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
His colony was probably planted on Roanoke Island and was in what is now North Carolina, but for many years the whole seaboard from Florida to Newfoundland was known as Virginia.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Virgin Queen” mean?
His colony was probably planted on Roanoke Island and was in what is now North Carolina, but for many years the whole seaboard from Florida to Newfoundland was known as Virginia.
Is “Virgin Queen” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.