LATA

LATA is an acronym for Local Access Transport Area. This is a geographic region which has boundaries which usually defines how and by whom your long distance phone calls are billed. A long distance call made to someone within your LATA is said to be IntraLATA and is often also referred to as a local toll call. Calls that cross LATA boundaries are said to be, of course, InterLATA and are by default handled by ATT, MCI, Sprint, etc. Those are long distance calls.

La"ta, La"tah (?), n. [Malay.]

A convulsive tic or hysteric neurosis prevalent among Malays, similar to or identical with miryachit and jumping disease, the person affected performing various involuntary actions and making rapid inarticulate ejaculations in imitation of the actions and words of another person.

© Webster 1913