ETYM Latin, from Greek oasis; cf. Copt. ouahe.
(Irregular plural: oases).
A fertile tract in a desert (where the water table approaches the surface).
Area of land made fertile by the presence of water near the surface in an otherwise arid region. The occurrence of oases affects the distribution of plants, animals, and people in the desert regions of the world.

Acronym for Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards. A consortium of technology companies formed to develop guidelines for use of XML (Extensible Markup Language) and related information standards.