Lower California
- proper noun
:
Baja California
- Many tourists visit Lower California for its scenic beaches and mild climate.
Examples
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The rugged terrain of Lower California is popular among hikers and adventure seekers.
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In the 19th century, explorers mapped much of Lower California and its mountainous landscape.
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Many tourists visit Lower California for its stunning beaches.
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Have you ever traveled to Lower California?
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Many tourists visit Lower California for its scenic beaches and mild climate.
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In the 19th century, explorers mapped much of Lower California and its mountainous landscape.
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The rugged terrain of Lower California is popular among hikers and adventure seekers.
Synonyms
24
5.1
A long strip of land in northwestern Mexico with beaches and desert
2
5.0
A long strip of land with mountains in northwest Mexico between the Pacific and the Gulf of California
A long narrow peninsula with mountains in northwest Mexico that separates the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of California
Surface Forms
Morphology
lower + California
The meaning is directly inferable from combining 'lower' (indicating the southern or lower-lying part) with the place name 'California' — readers will understand it refers to the lower/southern region of California (historically the Baja peninsula). As a descriptive place-name construction this is compositional and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would likely grasp the meaning.
Etymology
Lower California comes from early Spanish explorers and mapmakers. They called the whole area California and added lower to show the part that lay farther south on their maps, so the name came to mean the long southern peninsula now called Baja California.