countryman

Etymology

It is formed from English country + man.^[2][3][4][5] Merriam-Webster Unabridged gives the Middle English form as contreeman, from contree (“country”).^[6][7] The OED notes a surname “Johannes Contreman” in 1279, which might show earlier use, though the first element is uncertain;^[2] Etymonline dates the surname to the late 13th century.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A person who lives in or comes from the countryside, a peasant: about 1300, in a life of Saint Swithun.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Also from about 1300 it meant a native or inhabitant of a particular region or country, a sense now rare except in phrases such as north countryman.^[2][4][6] The sense "a person from one's own country, a compatriot", usually with a possessive (his countrymen), is recorded from about 1390,^[2] and Etymonline dates it to the mid 14th century.^[3] Johnson (1755) gave this sense first, quoting Shakespeare's Macbeth.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 1300 – a person who lives in or comes from the countryside.^[2][3]
• c. 1300 – a native or inhabitant of a particular region or country.^[2]
• c. 1390 – a compatriot.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A person from the same country as another; a compatriot: The cyclist was cheered on by his countrymen.^[9][6][2]
2. A person who lives in the country rather than a town, or who has a rural occupation or manner; a rustic.^[9][6][2]
3. A native or inhabitant of a particular country or region: a north countryman.^[6][2][4]

Related words

• country
• countrywoman
• fellow countryman

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ Gove, Philip Babcock, ed. (1961), Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam
8. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
9. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins