What is the English word for "rinconada"

In Appalachia, where I grew up, we referred to a smallish valley (hollowed out area) in a mountain range (not down at the bottom of the mountain but between two taller areas which is what the illustration looks like)as a "hollow" which we pronounced "holler". People settled in hollows because they generally had creeks in them (were probably formed by creeks, actually) and were somewhat protected from the elements, and consequently towns grew up there.

So, country singer Loretta Lynn's famous tune says that she was born in "Butcher Holler", which is a town in Kentucky (technically Butcher Hollow, KY).

The problem with offering this word as a translation is, in my experience, people don't use it much in conversation any more. It's found more in place names now. We are more likely to say "5 miles south on Hwy 70" if we are referring to a geographic location. But if you used this term in my region, we would certainly know what you meant.

Another option might be "cut", which is a passage between two taller areas in a mountain range

crook

a bent part of something, esp. the inner part:

Ex. Kids should learn to sneeze and cough into the crooks of their elbows.

Cambridge

A rinconada is...

Ángulo entrante que se forma en la unión de dos casas, calles o caminos, o entre dos montes.

DRAE

This seems to mean the inner part of the angle, inter-section, etc.

The above description clearly notes the similarity between ridges of a mountain and an arm.

From This is Capetown, by David Briggs

It is possible there is another term in use by cartographers that I am not aware of, but I have heard writers use the phrase to describe small villages sheltering in the protected part of mountain ridges.

...and just for Christmas...