Etymologically
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marina

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 18 October 2026 at 03:53. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /məˈɹinə/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Italian marina (“coast, shore, port area”),[2][3] with Barnhart and Etymonline also allowing Spanish marina,[4][5] the noun use of the feminine of marino (“of the sea”),[3][6] from Latin marīnus (“of the sea”),[5][4][2] from mare (“sea”),[5] from Proto-Indo-European *mori- (“body of water”).[5] Post-classical Latin already had Medieval Latin marīna (“coastal region”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The part of a coastal town next to the sea, a seaside promenade: 1798 in the OED and Merriam-Webster,[2][6] 1805 in Barnhart and Etymonline, in Washington Irving's letters.[4][5]

Semantic evolution

The modern sense, a dock or basin with moorings for yachts and small boats, arose in American English in the 1930s:[5][2] the OED's first example is from 1930, Barnhart and Etymonline give 1935.[2][4][5] The older promenade sense is now rare.[2]

Timeline

  • 1798 – a seaside promenade or port area.[2][6]
  • 1930 – a harbour for yachts and small craft.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A small harbour or dock with moorings and services for yachts and other small boats.

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  4. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster