hinterland
noun
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When you're dealing with geography, it helps to know your hinterland from your umland. In the late 19th century, geographer George Chisholm took note of the German word Hinterland (literally "land in back of") and applied it specifically to the region just inland from a port or coastal settlement. (Chisholm spelled the word hinderland, but English speakers eventually settled on hinterland.) Early in the 20th century, another geographer adopted the German Umland ("land around") to refer to the territory around an inland town. What hinterland and umland have in common is a reference to a region economically tied to a nearby city. Nowadays, hinterland has a less technical use as well—it can be used for land that is simply out in the sticks. It can also be applied figuratively.
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Examples of hinterland in a Sentence
Wendell Steavenson, Vogue, 5 Jan. 2025
Globalization creates wealth by enticing dynamic urban centers in richer countries to invest abroad rather than in hinterlands at home.
—Stephen Kotkin, Foreign Affairs, 14 June 2018
Not every hike has to be in the hinterlands to feel iconic.
—Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 28 Nov. 2024
His time in Dylan’s home state, Chalamet says, reminded him of his visits to the French hinterlands.
—Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2024
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“Hinterland.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hinterland. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
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hinterland
noun
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