Costero

Costero is a Spanish term derived from costa, used as both an adjective and a noun to denote relations to the coast. The standard meaning in geography and everyday language is “coastal” or “shoreline.”

As an adjective, costero describes anything associated with the coast or shoreline. Common usages include costero landscapes, clima costero (coastal climate), fauna costera and flora costera (coastal flora and fauna), and zonas costeras or ecosistemas costeros (coastal zones and ecosystems). In this sense, costero functions as a precise descriptor in geography, meteorology, ecology, and urban planning, often used interchangeably with litorral or litoral in some regions.

As a noun, costero can refer to a person who lives on or works along the coast, though this usage varies by country and dialect and is less formal than the adjectival sense. It may appear in regional speech to designate coastal inhabitants or communities, but its meaning is not fixed nationwide.

In ecology and environmental science, costero commonly labels organisms and habitats tied to the littoral zone or coastal belt, such as costeros habitats, which include dunes, beaches, and nearshore ecosystems. The term is widely understood in Spanish-language geographic and environmental literature as a way to distinguish coastal phenomena from inland contexts.

See also: costa, litoral, zona costera, ecosistemas costeros, clima costero.