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Glite Dictionary
Balkan nation

Balkan nation

1 4.1
A country in southeastern Europe, for example Greece or Serbia
  • noun
translation icon : nación balcánica

Examples

  • We highly value our ties with the states of Central and Eastern Europe and the Baltic and Balkan nations.

    Academic text (2007)

  • More importantly, the EC population of 325 million would grow by only ten percent if the EFTA states joined, but it would swell immensely if the others entered: 65 million would be added by the Visegrad trio, and 50 million more by the Baltic and Balkan nations.

    Academic text (1992)

  • The prime minister said it was done to end a wave of strikes and political unrest in the Balkan nation.

  • His name is Martin Strel, and he's from the western Balkan nation of Slovenia.

  • If Milo Djukanovic and his coalition prevail, he could serve as this tiny Balkan nation's prime minister again and continue its push for EU membership.

Synonyms

Balkan country
vsBalkan nation
1 4.3

A country on the peninsula in southeastern Europe like Greece or Albania

is the identical meaning but uses an alternative common term
Balkan state
vsBalkan nation
1 3.7

A country in southeast Europe on the Balkan Peninsula, for example Albania or Greece

is the same geographic sense but focuses on naming example places

Surface Forms

Balkan nation singular
Balkan nations plural

Morphology

Balkan + nation

The meaning is directly compositional: a B1 learner who knows 'Balkan' (relating to the Balkans) and 'nation' (a country) can infer 'a country on the Balkan Peninsula.' This adjective+noun pattern is straightforward and common across languages, so the expression is immediately understandable from its parts.

Etymology

Balkan nation comes from Balkan, an old Turkish word for a 'mountain' or 'mountain range', and nation means a 'country', so the name was used for the hilly, mountainous part of southeast Europe. That's why a Balkan nation today means a country from that area.