...Hm. Darn, there's just no way of knowing why it's named that.
Want to quickly convey to the viewer that an island—often a deserted or seemingly unimportant one—is somehow special? Give it the shape of a crescent moon.
The ocean tides are connected to the phases of the moon, so making an island moon-shaped ties in with this theme. Alternatively, it may simply be an aesthetic choice, being a form that is instantly recognizable while also being a plausible natural shape for an island. Either way, it's a sign that something about the island is special—maybe something will happen here when the moon in the sky is also in a crescent shape, or maybe some kind of secret—perhaps treasure—is to be found underwater in the spot right in the middle of the crescent moon.
Note that while this trope usually applies to islands, it can also include other crescent moon-shaped landforms such as lakes or valleys.
Of course, a crescent is a shape, moon or otherwise. Other well-known objects shaped like a crescent are the planet Venus and croissants, "croissant" being the French word for "crescent". However, oftentimes an explicit connection is made between the shape and the moon.
Sub-Trope of Object-Shaped Landmass. See also "Far Side" Island for another common island design. For landforms that resemble something more lively than the moon, see Monster-Shaped Mountain.
Examples:
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Anime & Manga
- Fairy Tail: Galuna Island, also known as Moon Island, is roughly crescent-shaped and is connected to the moon in a few other ways.
- Naruto the Movie: Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom: Naruto and friends protect the royal family of the Land of the Moon, who rule over an island shaped like a crescent moon.
- Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire: "Where's Armaldo?": Wales Island is crescent-shaped. Due to its isolation, much of the island has remained untouched by civilization, making it home to many ancient trees and Fossil Pokémon research.
- Science Ninja Team Gatchaman: "The Secret of the Crescent Coral Reef": The underwater secret base of the Science Ninja Team is well-hidden beneath a crescent-shaped reef.
Film — Live-Action
- Bedknobs and Broomsticks: The protagonists visit the Isle of Naboombu, which is inhabited by Uplifted Animals, to find the Star of Astoroth. As they approach the island, it looks like a crescent, with a large lagoon. They first crash into the lagoon and encounter anthropomorphic sea life before going up to the surface.
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Holy Grail is kept in a chamber located in a crescent moon-shaped valley, which is indicated in the clue to its location in the journal.
Literature
- A Song of Ice and Fire: The World of Ice & Fire: Marahai is crescent-shaped island in the Jade Sea.
Toys
- BIONICLE: Voya Nui is shaped like an elongated crescent moon, and it's the location of the Mask of Life. However, the shape is meaningless In-Universe, as the planet it's on doesn't have a moon (it sort of is a moon, but not close enough to see the main planet). Mahri Nui was formerly connected to Voya Nui before sinking into the sea, giving Voya Nui its crescent shape.
Video Games
- Chrono Cross: Sky Dragon Isle is a crescent-shaped island that serves as the abode of the Sky Dragon. It is the hibernating form of Terra Tower, which was the home of the Reptites of Dinopolis before their defeat by Chronopolis, and serves as the game's final dungeon.
- Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 Yuri's Revenge: In one of the Soviet missions, Yuri has a submarine pen located on an uncharted crescent-shaped island in the South Pacific and it's up to the Soviet commander's task to destroy it before Yuri sends out his boomer submarine fleet to launch missiles all over the world. In the end, the Soviets won but Yuri and his forces fled to the moon.
- Diddy Kong Racing: Crescent Island is a vaguely crescent-shaped track on Sherbet Island.
- Final Fantasy:
- Final Fantasy I: The town of Crescent Lake is named for the crescent moon-shaped lake located around it. The town is where the player finds the Circle of Sages, who tell them about the legends of the Four Fiends and the Crystals. Among these sages is Lukahn, the one who made the prophecy foretelling that the Warriors of Light (the player characters) would restore balance to the world.
- Final Fantasy V: The sea under Crescent Island is the location of the ancient ruins where the party first finds the airship. The island is also home to the Black Chocobo, a very rare Chocobo species that was thought to be extinct.
- Final Fantasy VI: Crescent Island is the location of the village of Thamasa, the home of the only humans in the world to be born with the ability to use magic, as they are descendants of the Magi. The villagers keep their magic a secret from outsiders due to fear of persecution.
- The Legend of Zelda:
- The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages: Moonlit Grotto is a dungeon on Crescent Island, a roughly circular island with a higher plateau in the shape of a crescent. The dungeon entrance is located right in the middle and is inaccessible in the past because the ocean blocks it off from the rest of the island. In the present, however, the level of water is lower, allowing the dungeon to be reached. When Link has gained the ability to swim in deep water, he can reach the entrance in the past, and it turns out to be the path leading to the game's final dungeon.
- The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker: One of the many islands in the game is shaped like a crescent moon. Although there isn't much to be found on it, its shape is a hint that it is connected to the moon somehow. It's one of the locations where the Ghost Ship may appear, which is determined by the in-game moon phases. However, the Ghost Ship appears here when the moon is full, not crescent.
- Paper Mario: The Origami King: Crescent Moon Island is a crescent-shaped island in the Great Sea. Solving the puzzle on the island causes the missing part of the moon to rise up from the ocean floor, forming a full moon, after which the island is renamed Full Moon Island.
- Pilotwings 64: Crescent Island is a tropical, crescent-shaped island.
- Pokémon:
- Pokémon Diamond and Pearl:
- Contradictory to its name, Fullmoon Island is vaguely crescent-shaped alongside having a crescent pond in its center. Here, the Legendary Pokemon Cresselia resides, who roams Sinnoh upon encounter but leaves behind a special Lunar Wing to help ward off her counterpart Darkrai's nightmares.
- Newmoon Island is also a vaguely crescent-shaped and is a mirrored version of Fullmoon Island, which makes sense given Darkrai, Cresselia's counterpart, resides there.
- Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire: Cresselia resides on Crescent Isle. It's a crescent-shaped island that randomly appears and disappears.
- Pokémon Diamond and Pearl:
- RuneScape: There are two crescent-shaped islands. One is named Lunar Isle and it depicts the waning moon while the other is named Waterbirth Island and depicts the waxing moon.
- Sea of Thieves: There is a crescent-shaped Crescent Isle in the Shores of Plenty region.
- Skies of Arcadia: Crescent Isle is a small, deserted landmass floating in an uncharted area of Arcadia. Vyse gets shipwrecked there and is stuck for two weeks until he's picked up by The Claudia. When Vyse becomes captain of his own battleship and pirate crew, he returns to Crescent Isle and makes it his base.
- Sonic Superstars: The largest island of the Northstar Islands is crescent-shaped. The other islands in the archipelago are situated as extensions of the horns.
- Yoshi's Safari: Crescent Coast is a crescent-shaped beach in the Light Realm.
Western Animation
- Avatar: The Last Airbender: Crescent Island is a volcanic, crescent-shaped island within Fire Nation territory that houses a Fire Temple. Because it is of great significance to Avatar Roku, it is here that Avatar Aang is first able to have a conversation with him.
- Dragons: Riders of Berk: "Appetite for Destruction": A map of the sea around Berk shows a string of islands, one of which called Crescent Island. It's the one that's crescent-shaped.
- Molly of Denali: "Molly Mabray and the Mystery Stones": The petroglyphs are located on a beach called Crescent Cove, so called because it is shaped like a crescent moon. The petroglyphs are only visible at low tide.
- The Wild Thornberrys: "Thornberry Island": The Thornberrys arrive on an uncharted crescent-shaped island in the Pacific Ocean. They get stranded because Nigel accidentally switches on the comvee's security system. The family waits for rescue as they enjoy this newly-discovered tropical paradise until they snap and turn on each other.
Real Life
- Crescent-shaped islands commonly form from volcanic craters in real life—for example, the small island of Molokini
off the coast of Maui, Hawai'i, or Santorini/Thera in the Aegean Sea.