地方
ちほう · chihou · JLPT N3 · noun
area
🗾 地方 = land (地) + direction (方): the land off in one direction
地 means ground or land, and 方 means direction or side, so 地方 is the land lying in some direction: a region. It also means the provinces as opposed to the capital, as in 地方出身, from the countryside.
地 — earth 土 + 也 (phonetic)
地 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left component 土 means 'earth' or 'soil' and gives the meaning, while 也 on the right hints at the pronunciation. Originally referring to the ground or land, it broadened to mean 'place,' 'region,' and 'territory.'
方 — pictograph of a plow or two boats joined side by side
方 originated as a pictograph, traditionally interpreted as a plow handle or two boats lashed together. From the idea of paired boats it extended to mean 'side by side,' then 'square,' 'direction,' and 'region.' It was later borrowed for the abstract sense of 'method' or 'way.'