northern territories

plural noun

1. a former British protectorate in W Africa; now a part of N Ghana.

noun

1. a territory in N Australia. 523,620 sq. mi. (1,356,175 sq. km). Capital: Darwin.

pl n

1. a former British protectorate in W Africa, established in 1897; attached to the Gold Coast in 1901; now constitutes the Northern Region of Ghana (since 1957)

noun

1. an administrative division of N central Australia, on the Timor and Arafura Seas: the Arunta Desert lies in the east, the Macdonnell Ranges in the south, and Arnhem Land in the north (containing Australia’s largest Aboriginal reservation); the Ashmore and Cartier Islands constitute a separate Australian External Territory. Capital: Darwin. Pop: 198 700 (2003 est). Area: 1 347 525 sq km (520 280 sq miles)