Crossword Genius

Leave order about North Carolina being a separate country (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

enclave

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'a separate country' is the definition.
The answer and definition can be both locations as well as being singular nouns.
Perhaps there's a link between them I don't understand?

'leave order about north carolina' is the wordplay.
'order' indicates anagramming the letters.
'about' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'north carolina' becomes 'NC' (abbreviation).
'leave' anagrammed gives 'elave'.
'elave' going around 'nc' is 'ENCLAVE'.

'being' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for enclave that I've seen before include "Small territory owned by one state but lying within another" , "pocket" , "Group differing in ethnicity from surrounding people" , "Group ethnically different from those around it" , "Distinct territory within another" .)

I've seen this clue in The Daily Express.
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