Sublocalities

Sublocalities are geographic subdivisions of a larger unit such as a city, town, or municipality. They denote areas within the locality that are smaller than the whole locality but larger than street-level blocks, and they are often used to describe neighborhoods, districts, wards, or quarters. The exact meaning and boundaries of a sublocality vary by country, region, and data source.

In digital mapping and geocoding, sublocality is a structural field used to refine a location within a locality. Address schemas may include sublocality levels that correspond loosely to neighborhoods or suburbs. Because there is no universal standard, sublocalities in one dataset may not align with those in another.

Applications include postal routing, targeted public services, urban planning, census and demographic analysis, and electoral districting. Sublocalities help authorities and organizations allocate resources, plan infrastructure, and analyze localized patterns such as density, accessibility, or service coverage.

Boundaries for sublocalities can be official, recognized by government agencies, or informal, defined by residents and local practice. This plurality can complicate comparisons across datasets but also reflects local identities and governance structures.

Related concepts include locality, neighborhood, ward, district, and census tract. In practice, sublocality serves as a practical tool for organizing and referencing places within a larger urban area.