means The solid part of the earth's surface not covered by water, or a particular country, region, or property a person owns.

from An old Germanic word that has stayed remarkably steady through the centuries — Old English 'land' meant ground, soil, and territory, with close cousins in German 'Land,' Dutch 'land,' and the Old Norse and Gothic forms too. It traces back to a Proto-Germanic root, possibly linked to a Celtic word for an enclosed or open space, though the deeper trail grows faint. The verb sense — to bring a ship or plane to land, to 'land' a fish or a job — grew naturally from the noun: to reach solid ground.