Confused about what counts as Nottingham

Hi everyone,

I keep running into some confusion about naming conventions here. Specifically, what exactly counts as Nottingham, and what doesn't?

I consider myself as living in Nottingham, but in the district of Beeston. Yet, it appears that most people I've come across (eg in Beeston) think of themselves as living in Beeston, rather than in "Nottingham", as if Beeston is a distinct entity from Nottingham.

I also notice this same trend on the Nottingham subreddit, when someone asks for restaurant recommendation, and someone will say something like "Not quite in Nottingham, but there's a lovely place in Stapleford...". Utterly perplexing to me. I would understand this answer if someone asked specifically for restaurants in Nottingham city centre, but surely Stapleford should be included in "Nottingham"?

I'm just really confused why these areas are treated as such separate parts, rather than just different districts of the same city? Especially since there are urban public transport systems like the tram and double decker buses connecting them, rather than just being connected by mainline trains.

Can someone shed some light on this? Is this a UK thing, or is this a Nottingham thing, or am I just imagining things?