regionalism
[ ree-juh-nl-iz-uh m ]
/ ˈri dʒə nlˌɪz əm /
noun
Government. the principle or system of dividing a city, state, etc., into separate administrative regions.
advocacy of such a principle or system.
a speech form, expression, custom, or other feature peculiar to or characteristic of a particular area.
devotion to the interests of one's own region.
Literature. the theory or practice of emphasizing the regional characteristics of locale or setting, as by stressing local speech.
(often initial capital letter) a style of American painting developed chiefly 1930–40 in which subject matter was derived principally from rural areas.
RELATED CONTENT
RELATED WORDS
patois, vocabulary, language, accent, idiom, pronunciation, vernacular, lingo, tongue, jargon, terminology, slang, patter, argot, cant, provincialism, localism
Nearby words
- regional anesthesia,
- regional enteritis,
- regional hypothermia,
- regional ileitis,
- regional metamorphism,
- regionalize,
- regionally,
- regis,
- register,
- register mark
Origin of regionalism
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for regionalism
regionalism
/ (ˈriːdʒənəˌlɪzəm) /
noun
division of a country into administrative regions having partial autonomy
advocacy of such division
loyalty to one's home region; regional patriotism
the common interests of national groups, people, etc, living in the same part of the world
a word, custom, accent, or other characteristic associated with a specific region
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
regionalism
1878, originally of Italy, "tendency toward regional loyalties" (opposed to nationalism), from regional + -ism. As "a word or phrase of local use" is from 1953.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper