The Island of Montreal () is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main island of the Hochelaga Archipelago at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa rivers. Name The first French name for the island was l'ille de Vilmenon, noted by Samuel de Champlain in a 1616 map, and derived from the sieur de Vilmenon, a patron of the founders of Quebec at the court of Louis XIII. However, by 1632 Champlain referred to the Isle de Mont-real in another map. The island derived its name from Mount Royal (French Mont Royal, then pronounced ), and gradually spread its name to the town, which had originally been called Ville-Marie. In Kanien’kéha, the island is called Tiohtià:ke tsi ionhwéntsare ('broken in two', referring to the Lachine Rapids to the island's southwest) or Otsirà:ke (meaning 'on the fire'). In Anishninaabemowin, the land is called Mooniyaang, named for the first stop in the great Anishinaabe migration from Dawnland (the Maritimes) to the Great Lakes. Physical geography The island is approximately 50 km (30 miles) long and 16 km (10 miles) wide at its widest point, and has a shoreline of 266 km (165 miles). It is the second largest island in the Saint Lawrence River, after Anticosti Island in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The Island of Montreal is the largest island in the Hochelaga Archipelago, which is formed by the confluence of the Ottawa and St. Lawrence rivers. Near the Ottawa shore at the western end of island, the Ottawa River widens into Lac des Deux-Montagnes. A natural watercourse there, between the island and Île Perrot, has been improved by the island's Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue Canal. These waterways, connecting Lac des Deux-Montagnes with Lake Saint-Louis, constitute one of the places where the Ottawa flows into the St. Lawrence. North of the island's western end, Lac des Deux-Montagnes flows into Rivière des Prairies, still part of the Ottawa. The Prairies separates the island from the other major part of the Hochelaga Archipelago including Île Bizard and Île Jésus. After coursing about 55 km (35 miles), the Prairie, at the northeastern tip of the island, joins the St. Lawrence. The St. Lawrence coast of the island faces a variable waterway. In the southwest, the St. Lawrence River