noun, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
northern region; the north
Refers to a northern area, often used in geographic, administrative, or descriptive contexts. Can function as a noun or modify another noun with の.
The northern region of this prefecture gets a lot of snow.
We conducted a survey of residents in the northern region.
北部 is a more general term for 'northern part' or 'the north', while 北部地域 explicitly means 'northern region' and is often used in formal or geographical contexts.
Compound of 北部 (northern part) and 地域 (region).