Old area excluding island state (6)
I believe the answer is:
oregon
'state' is the definition.
(I know that Oregon is a state)
I don't understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for oregon that I've seen before include "Salem is this State's capital" , "Salem's state" , "area of the US" , "Timber" , "No gore seen in this American state" .)