region of central England, commonly subdivided into the East and the West Midlands. The East Midlands includes the historic and geographic counties of Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, and Rutland. The West Midlands comprises Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. Parts of the historic counties of Warwickshire, Worcestershire, and Staffordshire make up the metropolitan county of West Midlands. The West Midlands contains a heavy concentration of large industrial cities, including Birmingham, Coventry, Leicester, Derby, Dudley, Nottingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Walsall, and Wolverhampton. Parts of the region are rural, however, and agriculture remains economically important. Pop. (2001) 9,439,516.