'Antilles' originates from Spanish 'Antillas', ultimately from Portuguese 'Antilhas' and medieval Latin 'Antilia', where 'Antilia' referred to a legendary island (often linked in medieval maps to Atlantic island lore).

'Antilles' changed from the medieval Latin name 'Antilia' (a legendary Atlantic island) to Portuguese 'Antilhas' and Spanish 'Antillas', and was adopted into modern English as 'Antilles' to refer to the Caribbean island group.

Initially, it referred to a legendary island in medieval geography; over time the name was transferred to and came to mean the real island group in the Caribbean now called the Antilles.