Why call it The Mysterious Beyond?

[WeirdRaptor]

Ever since I first saw Land Before Time 2: The Great Valley Adventure, the fact that the Valley dwellers called the lands outside of the Valley 'The Mysterious Beyond' just bugged me. They came from out there. Used to live out there. Joruneyed across the lands beyond the walls of the Valley guided by very detailed and specific instructions to get there. 'Follow the bright circle to where it sets each day, past the rock that looks like a long neck, and across the mountains that burn.'
I think there was more to the instructions, but I'm not remembering right now. The point is, obviously the lands beyond were fairly well known, so it seems kind of silly for them to be called The Mysterious Beyond. The Lands Beyond  or Lands Outside would have been better.

Or was the Mysterious Beyond in reference to a specific part of the outside world? Nothing in the films even infers this, so I doubt it.

Anyone have any input and opinions on this?

[pokeplayer984]

I think it might be the case of a name that the original residents of the valley came up with.  The residents we know came from The Mysterious Beyond.  However, what of those that have lived there all their life?  Those who never ventured outside The Great Valley?  Those ones didn't know ANYTHING outside the valley.  It was such a mystery to them.  So I'm guessing THAT's where it got the name in the first place.

[Ptyra]

^ Seconded.

The Rainbow Faces questioned it too.

Doc states that there are valleys just as good as the Great Valley. Would those have names?

I guess the "Mysterious Beyond" would also be a name for a place that just doesn't have a name.

[Kor]

It could be a generic term that means areas that the person using the term has not been to and or does not now the name of the place they may be talking about.

[Malte279]

The first sequels of LBT still maintained the image of the Great Valley being the last (or at least one of very, very few) inhabitable spots in the world. In the original movie it had an almost mythological quality most strikingly put in the quote: "Some things you see with your eyes, others you see with your heart."
Those who lived there probably wouldn't ever leave there on their own accord thereby thinking of everything outside as mysterious or dangerous. Those who come to settle down in the Great Valley would likely take over the term.
I think in LBT 5 (when they decide to leave the Great Valley) Littlefoot's grandpa actually refers to it as something along the lines of the "outside world" (or something similar) for once.
One thing I have been wondering about is whether there have been other descriptions of the way to the Great Valley for those who did not happen to live east of it. Another thing is the question if (from the point of view of the later sequels) the dying of the world we see in the original movie was limited only to a region east of the Valley.

[WeirdRaptor]

Interesting take. I hadn't thought of the Valley having "original inhabitants" since everyone seems to arrive at it rather than having been hatched there. Thanks, everyone. That was always a thing that made me raise an eyebrow at it.

[The Friendly Sharptooth]

My guess is that those who live in the valley know it very well. Danger is understood, like the Sinking Sand. Food is everywhere, as is water. I don't recall a resident ever mentioning getting lost in the valley. That location is understood.

Whenever dinosaurs who live there leave, there is always something new, just waitng to be discovered by someone, be it geysers, a creature, a plant, etcetera. I think beyond the valley has just proven so many times to have so many new surprises in store that it has been dubbed a myserious place. If the dinosaurs were all-knowing of the wonders outside the valley, I think their naming would be different.

Another word for mysterious is unknown. The valley doesn't look too big to me, so it probably wouldn't be that difficult to become familiar with. The dinosaurs know the valley, while the general outside of it is unknown. They may just be saying the unknown area when using the term "Mysterious Beyond."

It may not just be a term coined by the original residents. In the fifth movie, Littlefoot's grandfather mentioned that they all seemed to have forgotten what it's like out there because they never needed to remember it, what with the valley providing all their needs. Therefore, having forgotten a lot of what it is like, and knowing that there are so many things out there they never knew, it seems appropriate to refer to the outside using a vague title.

[Ptyra]

^ Exactly what TFS said.
To go along with that, it probably hasn't been explored very much. They know very little about it, and very few go beyond what they already know.

It's kind of like Outer Space for us. We know very little about it and what we do know is what few people have done-even though it wasn't physically exploring it.

'Course, the GOF, Ruby, Chomper, and Pterano (definately Pterano) would make the Mysterious Beyond less Mysterious. Seven of them have been there a lot and the other had no choice BUT to go deep and make himself useful.

(So, in away, The Mysterious Beyond to LBT is Outer Space to us   )

[Duckyfan]

They probably named it the mysterious beyond because they wanted to make it sound mysterious what i don't understand is they lived in the mysterious beyond before the great valley and so why would it be mysterious?  

[Serris]

Perhaps "Mysterious Beyond" could be a respectful term for the "Outside World"?

Of course, there is the possibility the Mysterious Beyond could be a termed coined by the dinosaurs who had forgotten (or never) knew of the life out there and the name stuck.