Midlands

The Midlands, sometimes known by the archaism Mercia, is a large region of England located, as its name suggests, in the middle of the country. It is characterised by a lack of substantial coastline, rolling, fertile countryside, large industrial cities, and distinctive accents and dialects.

Although the region is broadly defined, for statistical purposes, "the Midlands" generally describes the two statistical regions of East Midlands and West Midlands combined. The Midlands may also be defined along historical boundaries, such as those of the Anglian kingdom Mercia, which became a part of the Kingdom of England in the 10th century.

Definition

The English Midlands is a large and loosely defined area; it is not one of the 9 statistical regions of England, though it lends its name to two; the East and West Midlands. In the context of statistics, "the Midlands" typically refers to these regions grouped together. East Anglia may occasionally also be included with these as part of "the Midlands" for statistical purposes but, being a part of the statistical region East of England, it is more often associated with Southern England.

Defined along traditional county boundaries, the Midlands is generally considered to comprise these counties:

• Derbyshire
• Herefordshire
• Leicestershire
• Lincolnshire
• Northamptonshire
• Nottinghamshire
• Rutland
• Shropshire
• Staffordshire
• Warwickshire
• Worcestershire

Non-statistical Midland regions also exist, although these too are broadly defined. These are the North and South Midlands. The North Midlands typically groups parts of the Midlands with northern characteristics (such as Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and north Staffordshire) with southern areas of Northern England.