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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.

Examples of hinterland in a Sentence

the colonies hugged the coastline, while the hinterland remained largely unexplored

Recent Examples on the Web Modern treehouse cabins are sprouting in the Scandinavian hinterland, and the roof of a new Swiss lodge is designed to double as a walking trail. — Paige Darrah, WSJ, 6 May 2022 Migrants from India’s vast hinterland are now returning to its megacities in search of jobs, and the streets are packed with traffic. — NBC News, 7 Mar. 2022 Migrants from India’s vast hinterland are now returning to its megacities in search of jobs, and the streets are packed with traffic. — NBC News, 7 Mar. 2022 Migrant workers from India’s hinterland, who mostly worked on daily wages in urban India, then began leaving these centres en masse. — Manavi Kapur, Quartz, 7 Feb. 2022 Migrants from India’s vast hinterland are now returning to its megacities in search of jobs, and the streets are packed with traffic. — NBC News, 7 Mar. 2022 For gardeners, the survey brings an important discovery: The greatest diversity of bee species was not found in Mt. Cuba’s natural hinterland, but in the gardens. — Washington Post, 28 Apr. 2021 Migrants from India’s vast hinterland are now returning to its megacities in search of jobs, and the streets are packed with traffic. — NBC News, 7 Mar. 2022 Migrants from India’s vast hinterland are now returning to its megacities in search of jobs, and the streets are packed with traffic. — David Rising, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hinterland.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.