Exclaves

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Geographical areas that are politically part of one country but are completely surrounded by the territory of another nation
2. Land portions that belong to a specific nation yet are entirely encircled by the lands of different countries
3. Regions governed by one state while being physically isolated from it due to the surrounding territory of other states

Etymology: "Exclave" is a formation from two existing English pieces: the prefix "ex-", from Latin "ex" meaning "out of" or "from", and "enclave", a word for an area enclosed within foreign territory. Putting them together gives something like "a place cut out from" its parent territory, which describes exactly what the term names: a piece of one state's land that lies wholly inside another state. "Enclave" itself traces back through French to Latin roots meaning "to shut in" or "to enclose", and the "ex-" prefix flips that idea outward. The plural "exclaves" simply follows the usual English pattern for nouns ending in a consonant-plus-"e" sound, so it has no separate history of its own.

Synonyms: enclaves, detached territories