mainland

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmeɪn.lənd/, /ˈmeɪn.lænd/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English mayn land, a compound of mayn (“main”) and land (see main and land).^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The continuous body of land that makes up most of a country, as opposed to its islands: 1375 in the OED, about 1400 in Etymonline.^[4][3]

Semantic evolution

It usually refers to continuous land, not islands or peninsulas.^[3] The largest islands of Shetland and of Orkney have been called Mainland since 1596.^[4][5] Regional uses followed: in Canada the part of British Columbia on the continent (1921), in Australia the continent as opposed to Tasmania (1934), and in New Zealand, colloquially, the South Island (1949).^[4][5] Mainland China is attested by 1955,^[3] and mainlander from 1860.^[4]

Timeline

• 1375 – the main body of land.^[4]
• 1596 – Mainland, Shetland and Orkney.^[4]
• 1860 – mainlander.^[4]
• 1934 – Australia, as opposed to Tasmania.^[4]
• by 1955 – mainland China.^[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The main landmass of a country or continent, as opposed to its islands and peninsulas.
2. (New Zealand) A South Islanders' name for the South Island.
3. The largest island of Shetland or of Orkney.

Word family

• mainlander
• mainland China

Related words

• main
• 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. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins