homeland

Pronunciation

• IPA: UK /ˈhəʊm.lænd/, US /ˈhoʊm.lænd/^[1]

Etymology

It is a compound, from English home + land.^[2] Old English had hamland, which meant an enclosed pasture.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The land of one's birth or adopted home: about 1627 in Merriam-Webster, the 1660s in Etymonline, 1670 in the OED.^[3][2][4]

Semantic evolution

Homeland meaning home is from about 1892.^[4] The word is not in the Century Dictionary (1910), and around 1900 it often appeared in the names of real-estate developments.^[2] It became more frequent in the 20th century: by 1918 it was used of a Jewish state planned in Palestine, and by 1938 of German territorial policies.^[2] South Africa gave the name to the territories set aside for its Black population.^[5][6] The US Department of Homeland Security was created in 2002.^[2]

Timeline

• c. 1627 – homeland.^[3]
• 1670 – one's native land.^[4]
• c. 1892 – home.^[4]
• by 1918 – a Jewish homeland.^[2]
• 2002 – Homeland Security.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. One's native land; the country where one was born or lives.
2. A state or region closely identified with a particular people or ethnic group.
3. (South Africa, historical) Any of the ten territories designated as semiautonomous states for the Black population; a Bantustan.

Related words

• home ground
• fatherland
• motherland
• home
• land

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
6. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins