GORDON

district, Grampian region, northeastern Scotland; until the reorganization of 1975 it was part of the former county of Aberdeen. The district has an area of 855 square miles (2,214 square km) and is largely a coastal plain facing the North Sea on the east, but it reaches the hills of The Grampians in the west. The district's economy was primarily based on agriculture and whisky distilling until the extraction of North Sea oil revitalized the economy. Inverurie is the seat of the district authority. Pop. (1989 est.) 74,130.