The provincial name derives from its major island, Hainan, in Hainanese «Hai Nam», which is named after its position south of the Qiongzhou Strait. (To the north of the strait, the Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong is also known as Haibei/Hai Bac or «North of the Sea».) Former names for Hainan Island include Zhuya, Qiongya, and Qiongzhou. The latter two gave rise to the provincial abbreviation 琼 (Qióng/Kheng)