Where does “wasteland” come from?
Wasteland derives from English waste and land, where land comes from Middle English lond, Old English land, and Proto-Indo-European lendʰ- meaning to stretch or extend.
wasteland (English): A region with no remaining resources; a desert;...
Definitions
- A region with no remaining resources; a desert;...
Ancestry of “wasteland”, step by step
wasteland traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English land
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | land | The part of Earth which is not covered by oceans... |
| 2 | Middle English | lond | An independent nation, country or realm; A tribe,... |
| 3 | Old English | land | land; a country; region within a country:... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | land | land, area of ground |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | landą | land, area of ground |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | lendʰ- | land, heath; loins |