Hispania is possibly a derivation of I - Shipania , a Punic word . What does this translate as ?
Specifically , it may derive from a Punic cognate of Hebrew אי - שפניא ( i - shfania ) meaning " Island of the Hyrax " or " island of the hare " or " island of the rabbit " ( Phoenician - Punic and Hebrew are both Canaanite languages and therefore closely related to each other ) .