Questions tagged [geography]

Questions related to geography.

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What is a suitable word to describe a place where two rivers meet?

I've googled for a while and on some sites I've found the word "watershed" as the proposed word. Is it the word that best suits it?
mannyee's user avatar
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35 votes
15 answers
24k views

Generic name for places like village, town and cities

There is the German word Ort or Ortschaft which is a hypernym for places where people live like villages towns cities etc. Is there a correspondent word in English? I don't want to use location ...
splattne's user avatar
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31 votes
5 answers
47k views

Using the definite article before a country/state name

The Punjab is a rich state. Is it correct to use the before Punjab?
rimli's user avatar
  • 319
25 votes
2 answers
25k views

Meaning of suffix '-sex' in 'Sussex, Middlesex' [closed]

I know that Sussex and Middlesex are in England. It looks to me as if there is a pattern in names. What does the suffix -sex mean? Where does it come from?
Bobrovsky's user avatar
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21 votes
6 answers
7k views

What is a word equivalent to 'oceanic' but specific to a lake?

What is a word equivalent to 'oceanic' but specific to a lake? It'd be the blank in this analogy: oceanic : ocean :: _____ : lake (oceanic is to ocean as _____ is to lake) The context in which I'm ...
Heartspring's user avatar
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21 votes
14 answers
4k views

Word for inlets of a mountain

Can the word inlet be used for mountains, too? I'm looking for a word that describes valleys that reach into the mountain, but don't go across it. Here is a picture that tries to describe what I'm ...
gartenriese's user avatar
21 votes
7 answers
23k views

Is "the USA" singular or plural?

On the one side, the USA is just one country. Logic says it should be, then, singular, just like the United Kingdom is. Example: The USA owns this domain. On the other side, if I however expand "...
badp's user avatar
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21 votes
2 answers
3k views

Countries ending with -Y vs. -IA: What is the pattern?

I wonder why some country names in English are suffixed with -y (Lombardy, Italy, Hungary, Saxony, Sicily) and some with -ia (Bulgaria, Austria, Bavaria, Sardinia). I understand the etymology: "-...
Martin L's user avatar
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18 votes
3 answers
5k views

Why 'prefecture' for Japanese administration areas?

There are many ways of labeling the smaller administrative areas of a country: states. For the US, provinces for Canada, counties for Ireland for English speaking countries, and departments (or ...
Mitch's user avatar
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13 votes
7 answers
4k views

How to refer to the "elevated areas" of a mountain?

For example, in the following picture, I see two "elevated areas" (one on the right, and one on the left, at the distance): The only word that comes to my mind is hill. But I'm not quite sure, since ...
wyc's user avatar
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13 votes
6 answers
15k views

When to put "River" before or after its name and why?

Unlike mountain names, where "Mount" always precedes its name, e.g. Mount Everest, I've noticed that some rivers have "River" before its name, e.g. the River Nile but others have it after, e.g. the ...
Gnubie's user avatar
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13 votes
2 answers
4k views

Are there any rules governing what we call people from different countries?

people from China = Chinese people from Japan = Japanese people from Australia = Australian people from Lebanon = Lebanese people from Sweden = Swedish Are there any rules that govern this?...
RoboShop's user avatar
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12 votes
6 answers
13k views

Is the term "village" used in North America?

The post Difference between "town", "city" and "metropolis"? describes the usage of terms describing various sizes of cities. In the US, I have never encountered any ...
Village's user avatar
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12 votes
4 answers
63k views

What is the history and geographic area of the word "finna?"

In St. Louis, I learned of the word, "finna." I know it is slang/contraction for "fixing to." By asking dozens of people, I've learned that it is used by people of many different races and cultural ...
Eri's user avatar
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11 votes
6 answers
3k views

Word meaning 'having to do with rivers'

I had originally thought that the word riparian meant having to do with rivers, but it appears that it actually means only having to do with river banks. Is there a word that more exactly means having ...
Emma Dash's user avatar
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11 votes
7 answers
8k views

Can I use the term 'America' to signify just the United States?

I write legal marketing materials. Does the term 'America' signify Canada + USA + Mexico, etc. to readers abroad or will they know that I'm talking specifically about the USA?
user9650's user avatar
  • 111
11 votes
3 answers
5k views

Why do we say County Durham?

In Ireland all the counties are expressed as 'County....' followed by the name, e.g. County Kerry, County Galway, County Clare etc. This equally applies to the six counties north of the border, County ...
WS2's user avatar
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10 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why do we say "Eastern Europe" but "East Asia"?

My girlfriend, who is not a native English speaker, asked me this yesterday: why are some geographical regions prefixed with the nouns North, South, East and West, but others are prefixed with the ...
GMA's user avatar
  • 783
9 votes
4 answers
2k views

Term for all landmasses connected to Europe?

I'm looking for one phrase that refers to the entire landmass that makes Europe, Africa, and Asia without having to name each continent separately, much like how I can say the Americas to refer to ...
dsollen's user avatar
  • 667
8 votes
4 answers
3k views

Why are country names localized and city names not?

As discussed here, names for the same city in different languages tend to be just variant pronunciations. By contrast, a country that is known by (even roughly) the same name in most languages is the ...
Michael Lorton's user avatar
8 votes
3 answers
37k views

How should "Northern Europe" be capitalized?

Europe should obviously be capitalized, since it is a proper noun. Should the northern part of the example sentence "I was traveling through northern Europe." be capitalized? In country names such as ...
IQAndreas's user avatar
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7 votes
6 answers
805 views

Expression for an abrupt change in height

Is there an expression for an abrupt change in height? I’m looking for a word for the edge of the change, like in the German word Geländekante.
parallax's user avatar
  • 185
7 votes
7 answers
3k views

Word for crossing the bottom of a valley

To refer to the highest point on a hill, one might use the word "crest": He walked up to the crest of the hill, and surveyed his surroundings. On the other hand, one might also use "crest" as a ...
RobotZombieLord's user avatar
7 votes
3 answers
713 views

Can someone explain the geographical name "Switch"?

It generally used as a town name such as "Lyons Switch, OK" or "Bridges Switch, CO". I've seen it used many times over the years and never gave it much thought but recently became ...
Sam U's user avatar
  • 71
7 votes
4 answers
239 views

Is there a process name for an island becoming unisolated?

I previously asked this on the history stack exchange but unfortunately had no good luck, and I was recommended to give this stack exchange a go, so: Basically I would like to know if there is an ...
ThatKidConnor's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
693 views

Are "Czech Republic" and "Chechnya" cognates?

Let me preface this question by saying that the Czech Republic and Chechnya are two different countries. Are the two countries' names etymologically related, like Austria and Australia are? ...
Golden Cuy's user avatar
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6 votes
2 answers
660 views

What is the English word for "rinconada"

In general a "rinconada" is an incoming angle formed at the intersection of two houses, two streets, or two roads. In geography a "rinconada" is the land between two mountain ...
Andrés Chandía's user avatar
5 votes
4 answers
2k views

Up my street and down the lane [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Do I travel “up” or “down” to London from north of the city? Except where there is obvious difference in elevation e.g. on a sloping road, how do ...
Gnubie's user avatar
  • 2,051
5 votes
1 answer
459 views

Etymology of "Djibouti"

The country name Djibouti has no etymology listed on both Etymonline and Wiktionary. I do know that's it named after the city for sure, but where did that come from? I tried to research it, but all I ...
etymologynerd.com's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
10k views

What's the meaning of "this side of Albania"?

In this diary excerpt, Alan Rickman wrote: "Emma [Watson]’s diction is this side of Albania at times." I understand the general meaning of the idiom (What is the meaning of the phrase "...
Libavius's user avatar
  • 153
5 votes
1 answer
1k views

The definite article with geographical terms

I know in English you can use the definite article with geographical expressiones such as the sea, the country, the land, the city, the beach, the seaside, but what about other geographical terms? Can ...
Fae's user avatar
  • 882
4 votes
10 answers
6k views

Why does English have city/country names that differ from the local language?

For example: Italy = Italia Florence = Firenze Rome = Roma Venice = Venezia Munich = München Different reasons for different cities? Anglicised for pronunciation? The name changed and English didn'...
russau's user avatar
  • 151
4 votes
2 answers
7k views

How to refer to "mainland Europe"

As a Europhile living in England, it really bothers me when journalists refer to mainland Europe as "Europe". We're in Europe! But I appreciate that it offers a neat shorthand for referring to the ...
Seamus's user avatar
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4 votes
2 answers
2k views

Capitalising names of geographical/tourist terms

I'm translating a series of short tourism-related texts from Croatian to English and I can't find definitive answers for some of my dilemmas: Names of waterfalls / caves / trails & word order ...
evenity's user avatar
  • 43
4 votes
1 answer
757 views

How should I parse the name of the UK? [closed]

I've grown up in the UK and always considered that it is a United Kingdom of four countries: the three countries on the island of Great Britain and the country/province1 of Northern Ireland. ...
Lightness Races in Orbit's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
582 views

Name for the peak of a plateau

The highest point; the flatland. Ex: Summit is to mountain/hill as _____ is to plateau. Would summit just be acceptable in itself?
Aaron's user avatar
  • 81
4 votes
5 answers
6k views

A word to describe the point of land at the confluence of two rivers?

I'm seeking a word that best describes the point of land created by the confluence of two rivers. The parcel of land in question would be situated in between the two rivers as their flow combined to ...
Robert's user avatar
  • 49
3 votes
1 answer
879 views

Do Australians say "down north"?

I noticed some maps from the southern hemisphere are "reversed" with the south pole on top. Which makes me wonder, are there places in the southern hemisphere where the concept of "down" is presumed ...
jmathew's user avatar
  • 359
3 votes
2 answers
3k views

Is Jutland so-called because the region it describes 'juts out' into the ocean?

I know that 'Jutland', a part of Denmark, comes from the Danish 'Jylland', which describes the same region. But was that name just invented at random, or does it come from the verb 'jut', as the land ...
Jez's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
916 views

Adjective relating to Great Britain and Ireland

Is there an adjective meaning “from or pertaining to the British Isles” (or if you prefer “from Great Britain, Ireland or surrounding islands”, or “from the Atlantic Archipelago”, or whatever floats ...
Gilles 'SO- stop being evil''s user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
425 views

Does the word relitigate imply legal proceedings?

I understand the word, "litigate" to indicate some kind of legal action. However, I have recently come across the word "re-litigate" in a context that implies a difference of opinion that has not (yet?...
Kramii's user avatar
  • 611
3 votes
1 answer
636 views

What is the geographic term for a landmass separated by two rivers?

If there is a region of land that sort of makes an island with the two rivers (which are fare apart). What would you call it. For Example there is a region in Iraq/Syria that almost forms this (the ...
L Marsh's user avatar
  • 31
3 votes
1 answer
1k views

What does "water rich area" mean?

I am unsure how to specifically define a water-rich area. I assume that it is an area of water surplus but I am led to believe it has a more specific definition for I have been asked it as a separate ...
Jake Symons's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

How do you write "deep south"?

How does one write "deep south?" It is a proper noun so I believe South is capitalized but what about d/Deep ?
Ray Jennings's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
10k views

What are the associations of the word "Heights" in a city name? [closed]

There are lots of cities and other designations with the word "Heights" in the name. Does this refer to something specific? Is it a marketing tactic perhaps? Examples: Hacienda Heights Sterling ...
robamaton's user avatar
  • 143
3 votes
1 answer
384 views

The Black Country in UK

I have encountered the name The Black Country in old books. From Wikipedia: The Black Country is a loosely defined area of the English West Midlands conurbation, to the north and west of ...
Denis's user avatar
  • 733
3 votes
1 answer
241 views

Term for derogatory suffix used with city names?

When speaking of a city in negative terms one might attach a prefix/suffix to the city name. This nickname is a portmanteau that implies a derogatory tone. Most often this will be a negative term but ...
psl's user avatar
  • 133
3 votes
2 answers
618 views

Do I so often encounter simple past for past participle (e.g., “I have went,” “what was did to her”) because of where I am or when?

Since moving to small-town northern Minnesota (USA) two dozen years back to teach English, I have noticed a lot of instances in spoken language where the simple past is used in lieu of the past ...
Brian Donovan's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
3k views

Where can I find a list of colloquial abbreviations for cities? [closed]

I'm seeking a list of commonly used abbreviations for US cities (and also European cities, but let's start with the US). When I say abbreviations, that could be anything from 2 letters or more that ...
bobsmells's user avatar
  • 147
3 votes
3 answers
376 views

The grammatical number of "Newfoundland and Labrador"

Some of the confusion among the posted answers causes me to add this prefatory note: There is one province called Newfoundland and Labrador. There is no province called Newfoundland and there is no ...
Michael Hardy's user avatar