subnational

adjective

sub·​na·​tion·​al ˌsəb-ˈna-sh(ə-)nəl 

variants or sub-national

: existing or occurring below a national level : relating to or being a group or region within a nation

a subnational government

members of a subnational culture

Nations with differing political and economic systems are flourishing. Sub-national groups, with varied and contradictory agendas, are on the rise.

—Fareed Zakaria

Examples of subnational in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Apart from China, which has long engaged with armed groups along its shared border, Myanmar’s other neighbors are wary that developing deeper relationships with subnational administrations could draw the ire of the junta. —Richard Horsey, Foreign Affairs, 31 May 2024

The state will also launch an international climate partnership among subnational jurisdictions with similar Mediterranean climates and will participate in a local climate action summit. —Hayley Smith, Los Angeles Times, 29 Nov. 2023

On a subnational level, too, leftists outside the United States have put sloganeering aside to pursue concrete goals in office and show what their ideals can look like in real life. —Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 21 Mar. 2024

These are standalone projects that operate independently in the voluntary carbon offset market, outside of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s REDD+ framework for national and subnational projects. —Keerti Gopal, Ars Technica, 26 Aug. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above