foreland

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foreland A stable area on the edge of an orogenic belt; a foreland is usually on the margin of a craton and is underlain by continental crust. Many forelands have suffered warping during orogeny and also carry a superficial fold-and-thrust belt. The major direction of movement in an orogenic belt is towards the foreland. Where the orogenic belt lies between two stable areas, the other is called the hinterland.

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