Home Counties
The phrase Home Counties is a name for the English counties bordering London. These are Kent, Surrey, Middlesex and Essex. However, although Middlesex still exists as an historic County, the adinistrative county of the same name has long since been absorbed into Greater London (though parts of the administrative county are now in the administrative county of Surrey), along with parts of the other administrative counties. The list of administrative counties bordering Greater London also includes Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire. However, the phrase "Home Counties" is not usually applied with geographical precision, but simply refers to the south-east of England.In economic terms much of the region can nowadays be considered a very large suburb of London itself, sometimes called "London and the South-East".
In writing, it might be wise to avoid using the term, because some people whose home is not in the area find it a sign of London bias.
