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The Central Belt of Scotland
Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
 is a common term used to describe the area of highest population density within Scotland. Despite the name, it is not geographically "central", but in fact in the south of the country.

It was formerly known as the "Midlands" or "Scottish Midlands", but this term has fallen out of fashion.

The Central Belt lies between the Highlands
Scottish Highlands

The Scottish Highlands include the rugged and mountainous regions of Scotland north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault, although the exact boundaries are not clearly defined, particularly to the east....
 to the north and the Southern Uplands
Southern Uplands

The Southern Uplands is the southernmost of Scotland's three major geographic areas . They lie South of the Southern Uplands fault line that runs from Girvan on the Ayrshire coast in the West to Dunbar in East Lothian on the North Sea coast....
 to the south.

area is often considered as a strip following the M8 and M9
M9 motorway

The M9 motorway is a major motorway in Scotland. It runs from the outskirts of Edinburgh, Bypass routeing the towns of Linlithgow, Falkirk, Grangemouth and Stirling to end at Dunblane....
 motorways stretching from Greenock
Greenock

Greenock is a large town and former burgh of barony in the Inverclyde council area of western Scotland. It forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east....
 and Glasgow
Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and List of largest United Kingdom settlements by population in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's Scottish Lowlands....
 in the west to Edinburgh
Edinburgh

Edinburgh ; is the Capital city of Scotland, a position it has held since 1437. It is the seventh largest city in the United Kingdom and the second largest Scottish City status in the United Kingdom after Glasgow....
 in the east, encompassing towns such as Paisley
Paisley

Paisley is a town and former burgh in the west-Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is situated on the northern edge of the Gleniffer Braes, straddling the banks of the River Cart....
, Cambuslang
Cambuslang

Cambuslang is a suburban town on the south-eastern outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland located within the local authority area of South Lanarkshire....
, Hamilton
Hamilton, South Lanarkshire

Hamilton is a town in South Lanarkshire, in the west-central Lowlands of Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area....
, Stirling
Stirling

Stirling is a City status in the United Kingdom and former ancient burgh in Scotland, and is at the heart of the wider Stirling .The city is clustered around a large Stirling Castle and medi?val old-town....
, Falkirk
Falkirk

Falkirk The town lies at the junction of the Forth and Clyde Canal and the Union Canal , a location which proved pivotal to the growth of Falkirk as a centre of heavy industry during the Industrial Revolution....
, Livingston and Linlithgow
Linlithgow

Linlithgow is a town and former Royal burgh in West Lothian, Scotland. Those born in Linlithgow are sometimes nicknamed Black Bitches, and the town's coat of arms shows a black bitch dog, chained to an oak tree, which grows on an island....
.

larger Central Belt is a trapezoid stretching from Dundee
Dundee

Dundee is the fourth-largest City status in the United Kingdom in Scotland and, fully named as Dundee City, one of Scotland's 32 Local government in Scotland Council areas of Scotland....
, to Ayr
Ayr

Ayr is a town and port situated on the Firth of Clyde, in south-west Scotland. It has been a royal burgh since 1205 and the county town of the former Counties of Scotland of Ayrshire....
, and Dumbarton
Dumbarton

Dumbarton is a burgh in Scotland, lying on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire flows into the Clyde estuary....
 to Dunbar
Dunbar

Dunbar is a town in East Lothian on the southeast coast of Scotland, approximately 30 miles east of Edinburgh and 28 miles from the English Border at Berwick-upon-Tweed....
.






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The Central Belt of Scotland
Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
 is a common term used to describe the area of highest population density within Scotland. Despite the name, it is not geographically "central", but in fact in the south of the country.

It was formerly known as the "Midlands" or "Scottish Midlands", but this term has fallen out of fashion.

The Central Belt lies between the Highlands
Scottish Highlands

The Scottish Highlands include the rugged and mountainous regions of Scotland north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault, although the exact boundaries are not clearly defined, particularly to the east....
 to the north and the Southern Uplands
Southern Uplands

The Southern Uplands is the southernmost of Scotland's three major geographic areas . They lie South of the Southern Uplands fault line that runs from Girvan on the Ayrshire coast in the West to Dunbar in East Lothian on the North Sea coast....
 to the south.

Smaller Central Belt

The area is often considered as a strip following the M8 and M9
M9 motorway

The M9 motorway is a major motorway in Scotland. It runs from the outskirts of Edinburgh, Bypass routeing the towns of Linlithgow, Falkirk, Grangemouth and Stirling to end at Dunblane....
 motorways stretching from Greenock
Greenock

Greenock is a large town and former burgh of barony in the Inverclyde council area of western Scotland. It forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east....
 and Glasgow
Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and List of largest United Kingdom settlements by population in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's Scottish Lowlands....
 in the west to Edinburgh
Edinburgh

Edinburgh ; is the Capital city of Scotland, a position it has held since 1437. It is the seventh largest city in the United Kingdom and the second largest Scottish City status in the United Kingdom after Glasgow....
 in the east, encompassing towns such as Paisley
Paisley

Paisley is a town and former burgh in the west-Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is situated on the northern edge of the Gleniffer Braes, straddling the banks of the River Cart....
, Cambuslang
Cambuslang

Cambuslang is a suburban town on the south-eastern outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland located within the local authority area of South Lanarkshire....
, Hamilton
Hamilton, South Lanarkshire

Hamilton is a town in South Lanarkshire, in the west-central Lowlands of Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area....
, Stirling
Stirling

Stirling is a City status in the United Kingdom and former ancient burgh in Scotland, and is at the heart of the wider Stirling .The city is clustered around a large Stirling Castle and medi?val old-town....
, Falkirk
Falkirk

Falkirk The town lies at the junction of the Forth and Clyde Canal and the Union Canal , a location which proved pivotal to the growth of Falkirk as a centre of heavy industry during the Industrial Revolution....
, Livingston and Linlithgow
Linlithgow

Linlithgow is a town and former Royal burgh in West Lothian, Scotland. Those born in Linlithgow are sometimes nicknamed Black Bitches, and the town's coat of arms shows a black bitch dog, chained to an oak tree, which grows on an island....
.

Larger Central Belt

The larger Central Belt is a trapezoid stretching from Dundee
Dundee

Dundee is the fourth-largest City status in the United Kingdom in Scotland and, fully named as Dundee City, one of Scotland's 32 Local government in Scotland Council areas of Scotland....
, to Ayr
Ayr

Ayr is a town and port situated on the Firth of Clyde, in south-west Scotland. It has been a royal burgh since 1205 and the county town of the former Counties of Scotland of Ayrshire....
, and Dumbarton
Dumbarton

Dumbarton is a burgh in Scotland, lying on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire flows into the Clyde estuary....
 to Dunbar
Dunbar

Dunbar is a town in East Lothian on the southeast coast of Scotland, approximately 30 miles east of Edinburgh and 28 miles from the English Border at Berwick-upon-Tweed....
. This also takes in fairly densely populated areas such as Ayrshire
Ayrshire

Ayrshire is a registration county, and former counties of Scotland in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine, North Ayrshire....
, Fife
Fife

Fife is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire....
, Midlothian
Midlothian

Midlothian is one of the 32 Council areas of Scotland of Scotland, and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland. It borders the Scottish Borders, East Lothian and the City of Edinburgh council areas....
 and East Lothian
East Lothian

East Lothian is one of 32 unitary council areas in Scotland, UK, and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Scottish Borders and Midlothian....
. This area encompasses all the major cities of Scotland, except for Aberdeen
Aberdeen

Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous City status in the United Kingdom and one of Scotland's 32 Local government in Scotland Council areas of Scotland....
 and Inverness
Inverness

Inverness is a City status in the United Kingdom in northern Scotland. The city is the administrative centre for the Highland Council areas of Scotland, and it is promoted as the capital of the Scottish Highlands....
 which are located in the North of the country.

Both of these areas also contain the bulk of Scotland's industrial works.

Similar terms

There are several terms in common usage in a Scottish context with a similar meaning to "Central Belt".

  • The Central Lowlands
    Central Lowlands

    The Central Lowlands or Midland Valley is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and the Southern Uplands Fault to the south....
     is geologically defined and covers an area that stretches further to the north east than the Central Belt.
  • The "Midland Valley" is a less commonly used expression synonymous with "Central Lowlands".
  • The Scottish Lowlands
    Scottish Lowlands

    The Scottish Lowlands , although not officially a geographical area of the country, in normal usage is generally meant to include those parts of Scotland not referred to as the Scottish Highlands , that is, everywhere due south and east of a line between Stonehaven and Helensburgh ....
     are topographically and culturally defined and include all of Scotland outside of the Highlands and Islands
    Highlands and Islands

    The Highlands and Islands of Scotland are broadly the Scottish Highlands plus Orkney, Shetland and the Hebrides.The Highlands and Islands are sometimes defined as the area to which the Crofters' Holdings Act, 1886 of 1886 applied....
    , including the Southern Uplands
    Southern Uplands

    The Southern Uplands is the southernmost of Scotland's three major geographic areas . They lie South of the Southern Uplands fault line that runs from Girvan on the Ayrshire coast in the West to Dunbar in East Lothian on the North Sea coast....
    .
  • Central Scotland
    Central Scotland

    Central Scotland can refer to:* Central Belt, the area of highest population density in Scotland, also known as the "Midlands" or "Scottish Midlands"...
     is a less well-defined term used to mean various things, including "Central Lowlands" and "Central Belt".


See also

  • Dublin-Belfast corridor
    Dublin-Belfast corridor

    The Dublin-Belfast corridor is a term used to loosely describe a geographical area that encompasses the cities of Dublin and Belfast and the area between....
     - pop. 3 million