# Obscure geographic regional names **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 27, 2016, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008 "2016-07-27T05:47:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/1 "2016-07-27T05:47:43Z")
Just the other day, I stumbled upon a heretofore unknown-to-me geographic name: [Macaronesia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaronesia). No, it has nothing to do with a certain kind of pasta, nor is it the opposite of Micronesia. Instead, it’s a collective name for several island groups in the Atlantic: the Azores, Madeira, Canaries, and Cape Verde, plus the Savage Islands which are in between Madeira and Canaries. Apparently, this name has been around since hte middle of the 19th century. I think it was coined for the convenience of biologists studying the plants and animals in that area. It got me to thinking if there are other similar names. There’s the [Salish Sea](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salish_Sea), which is a name for the combined waters of Puget Sound, Georgia Strait, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. And possibly [The Palouse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palouse) qualifies. That’s an area of rolling hills mostly in southeast Washington state. So I’m looking for more like this. To qualify, it has to be a distinctive name, different from the names of political entities. And it should be a name that doesn’t appear on most maps of the area, unless it’s specifically a map of the obscure region. Anyone know of any others? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/2 "2016-07-27T12:52:54Z")
The Mississippi Delta is not the delta of the Mississippi River where it flows into the Gulf of Mexico. It is a region in northwestern part of the state of Mississippi, lying between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The Canadian Maritimes is an expression that is rarely used anymore. Originally, it was the three small provinces east of Quebec, and sometimes also included the Gaspe peninsula and Magdalen Islands of Quebec. But since the confederation of Newfoundland, which was not within the Maritimes (nor within Canada at all), the term “Atlantic Provinces” is now used almost exclusively to refer to the region east of Quebec. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/3 "2016-07-27T13:17:11Z")
I can think of many others, but I presume you are limiting your discussion to those places which have natural geographical features as their defining boundaries, and not political, historical or cultural significance. Examples of the latter would be: Political – the Missouri Bootheel, a part of the state that projects into Arkansas Historical – Louisiana’s “Florida Parishes”, those east of the Mississippi which were acquired from Spanish Florida, not from the Louisiana Purchase. Cultural – Acadiana, the section of Louisiana reflecting the culture of Acadian settlers. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/4 "2016-07-27T13:59:50Z")
Many such names are obscure for outsiders, but well known to residents within them; e.g., the Driftless Area of (mainly) Wisconsin (geological, but used in other contexts as well), and the Northeast Kingdom within Vermont. A strange on in Mexico is the tradition by some of calling the entire country beyond the Mexico City metro area the “interior.” For me, the Mexico City area is the MOST “interior” part of the country. ---
**Author:** ![Fleetwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fleetwood/32/271_2.png) [@Fleetwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fleetwood)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/5 "2016-07-27T14:16:20Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > The Mississippi Delta is not the delta of the Mississippi River where it flows into the Gulf of Mexico. It is a region in northwestern part of the state of Mississippi, lying between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. > > The Canadian Maritimes is an expression that is rarely used anymore. Originally, it was the three small provinces east of Quebec, and sometimes also included the Gaspe peninsula and Magdalen Islands of Quebec. But since the confederation of Newfoundland, which was not within the Maritimes (nor within Canada at all), the term “Atlantic Provinces” is now used almost exclusively to refer to the region east of Quebec. The Canadian Maritimes, Maritimes or Maritime Provinces are still widely referred to in New England, unless referrimng to one of the individual provinces. Newfoundland and Labrador is Newfoundland and/or Labrador. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/6 "2016-07-27T14:19:26Z")
Can the name be sociocultural? Like NYS’ [Burned-Over District](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burned-over_district)? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/7 "2016-07-27T15:49:49Z")
Nassau Point on Long Island. It can’t actually be found on Google Maps (there’s a Nassau Point Rd, but no indication that’s the name of the small peninsula it’s on. It wouldn’t be of any note, except for the fact that Albert Einstein summered there in 1939 and it was where he signed the letter to Roosevelt urging him to go about creating the atomic bomb\*. So it gets mentioned in history books. The letter has the wrong road in the address, and the name of the road has changed, so it’s a challenge to find the house. \*My grandfather was on the porch when Szillard showed up. ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/8 "2016-07-27T17:39:30Z")
Name of a place: the **[Lost Peninsula](http://michiganradio.org/post/story-michigans-lost-peninsula#stream/0)**. It’s the tip of a peninsula made by a small river emptying into Lake Erie. The tip is in Michigan, but is inaccessible by land without traveling into Ohio. About 20 or 25 years ago its possession was to be determined by the result of the Ohio State-Michigan game; Michigan won and retained possession. Name of a region: the [**Firelands**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firelands). It is an area of north central Ohio near Sandusky. It got its name in the late 1700s (before Ohio statehood) when the area was part of the Connecticut western reserve. Land was given to residents of certain Connecticut towns burned by the British in the Revolutionary War. ---
**Author:** ![epolo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b487fb/32.png) [@epolo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epolo)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/9 "2016-07-27T17:39:53Z")
I’ve always been partial to Wallace’s Line, which separates Asian fauna from Australian fauna. I learned just now when looking it up that it also forms the border of a transitional area called Wallacea. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/10 "2016-07-27T19:19:47Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > A strange on in Mexico is the tradition by some of calling the entire country beyond the Mexico City metro area the “interior.” For me, the Mexico City area is the MOST “interior” part of the country. Likewise in Panama anywhere outside Panama City is “the interior,” even if it’s on the coast. > [@epolo](#): > > I’ve always been partial to Wallace’s Line, which separates Asian fauna from Australian fauna. I learned just now when looking it up that it also forms the border of a transitional area called Wallacea. The eastern boundary to Wallacea being formed by Lydekker’s Line. (I have a _Field Guide to the Birds of Wallacea_.) West of Wallacea is [Sundaland](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundaland), including the Malay Peninsula and the large islands on the Sunda Shelf, including Borneo, Sumatra, and Jave. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/11 "2016-07-27T22:06:27Z")
Thanks for the replies. The Mississippi Delta would be the kind of thing I’m looking for, except it’s too well known (even if people have the wrong idea where it is). Let’s say there’ve been too many blues songs written about it. The Maritimes are also too well known, as well as being a region defined purely by political boundaries. The Missouri Bootheel is not really what I’m looking for. Ditto for the Florida Parishes and Acadiana. The Driftless Area is exactly the kind of region I’m thinking of. Thank you for that one. Wallacea and Sundaland are also good ones. Looking up these last two, I found the region Sahul, which is really a continent, but the name is new to me. Sahul is Australia, New Guinea, and the continental shelf area between them (which was above water during the ice ages). Basically it’s the area east of Lydekker’s Line. ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/12 "2016-07-27T22:38:38Z")
There’s a region of New York that is called “The Oblong.” It’s a strip of land on the border between New York and Connecticut. When a border dispute was settled between New York and Connecticut back in colonial times, the decision would have put Greenwich in New York. New York and Connecticut worked out a deal that allowed Connecticut to keep Greenwich (that’s how the state got it’s panhandle) and in compensation, Connecticut gave New York a strip of land about two miles wide from its western border. > **[Connecticut panhandle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut_panhandle)** > > The Connecticut panhandle is the southwestern appendage of Connecticut, where it abuts New York State. It is contained entirely in Fairfield County and includes all of Greenwich, Stamford, New Canaan, and Darien, as well as parts of Norwalk and Wilton. It has some of the most expensive residential real estate in the United States. > The irregularity in the boundary is the result of territorial disputes in the late 17th century, culminating with New York giving up its claim to this area, whose ... Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/13 "2016-07-27T22:44:23Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Many such names are obscure for outsiders, but well known to residents within them; e.g., the Driftless Area of (mainly) Wisconsin (geological, but used in other contexts as well). I’m a lifelong Midwesterner and I had never heard of the Driftless until I was there last month. There’s also the “Little Egypt” region of southern Illinois. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/14 "2016-07-27T22:50:07Z")
[Malesia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malesia) is a floristic region that basically combines Sundaland, Wallacea, the Philippines, and (sometimes) New Guinea. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/15 "2016-07-27T22:55:17Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > The Driftless Area is exactly the kind of region I’m thinking of. Thank you for that one. How about the [Channeled Scablands](http://www.sevenwondersofwashingtonstate.com/the-channeled-scablands.html) in Washington State? The [Staked Plain/Llano Estacado](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llano_Estacado) of Texas and New Mexico appears on maps but I think is little known outside the area. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/16 "2016-07-27T23:18:12Z")
South Park is a real place in Colorado, although not a town or city. It is a geographical area of about 1000 square miles, about 100 miles SW of Denver. It’s at about 10,000 feet but is a flat grassland, not mountainous. It is well known now, of course, but 20 years ago nobody had heard of it. It is not listed on any maps I know of (except maybe geographical maps). ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/17 "2016-07-28T00:16:44Z")
Welcome to the [US state of Jefferson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_(proposed_Pacific_state)). There is some signage, but it’s not anything official. I’ve seen the signs outside of that region, too, mostly by right wing tax protestor types. Some weird US borders with specific names: [There is a part of Kentucky](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kentucky_Bend) which doesn’t touch the west of the state. Delaware has [a circular border](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve-Mile_Circle). I doubt there’s signs in [Bir Tawil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bir_Tawil), as it’s desert and officially not part of any country. > [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > South Park is a real place in Colorado, although not a town or city. It is a geographical area of about 1000 square miles, about 100 miles SW of Denver. It’s at about 10,000 feet but is a flat grassland, not mountainous. The fictional town is supposedly based on Fairplay, though. And some Boulder. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/18 "2016-07-28T01:17:57Z")
There’s the Flint Hills of Kansas and part of Oklahoma. > **[Flint Hills](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flint_Hills)** > > The Flint Hills, historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills, are a region in eastern Kansas and north-central Oklahoma named for the abundant residual flint eroded from the bedrock that lies near or at the surface. It consists of a band of hills stretching from Kansas to Oklahoma, extending from Marshall and Washington Counties in the north to Cowley County, Kansas and Kay and Osage Counties in Oklahoma in the south, to Geary and Shawnee Counties west to east. Oklahomans gen The... Wabaunsee county is part of this region, in NE Kansas. It’s where a good part of the history of my mother’s side of the family is to be found. I will be buried in a small country cemetery in the Flint Hills, alongside four generations of my ancestors. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/19 "2016-07-28T03:12:13Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > [There is a part of Kentucky](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kentucky_Bend) which doesn’t touch the west of the state. > Delaware has [a circular border](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve-Mile_Circle). > > I doubt there’s signs in [Bir Tawil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bir_Tawil), as it’s desert and officially not part of any country. > The fictional town is supposedly based on Fairplay, though. And some Boulder. How about Carter Lake, Iowa? > **[Carter Lake, Iowa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carter_Lake,_Iowa)** > > Carter Lake is a city in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. A suburb of Omaha, Nebraska, it sits surrounding the south and west sides of the region's major airport, Eppley Airfield. It is separated from the rest of Iowa by the Missouri River, effectively making it an exclave. The population was 3,791 at the 2020 census. > Carter Lake is an example of the border irregularities of the United States, being the only city in Iowa located west of the Missouri River. In March 1877, a flood redi... There’s also a Farmville, Virginia. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008/20 "2016-07-28T04:20:11Z")
There’s the [Inland Empire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inland_Empire) of California. It’s probably become better known since the 2006 film. I’m not sure how well the [Big Thicket](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Thicket) of Texas is known outside that state. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obscure-geographic-regional-names/761008.md?page=2)