Earthian adj.

of or pertaining to Earth or Earthlings

  • 1907 N.Y. Times Magazine 25 Aug. 7/4

    The unaccountable disappearance in midair of the Universal Cruiser Vulture, which belonged to the Second Earthian Flying Squadron.

  • 1939 ‘J. Cotton’ Outlaw of Saturn in Science Fiction Mar. 104/2

    A heavily-built man of middle age, followed by a dozen raft-experts—Earthian pastmasters in the art of driving rafts through Saturnian mud-floods—came slowly up, brushing drying mud from his white ducks.

  • 1942 Planet Stories Spring 42 (editorial introduction to Ray Cummings’ Gods of Space) page image

    Planetoid-150 was a world of horror. A star of death, ruled by a weird and beautiful Earthian goddess.

  • 1947 H. Hasse Trail of Astrogar in Amazing Stories Oct. 46/1 page image Henry Hasse bibliography

    It was not known whether this man was Earthian, Martian or Ganymedian.

  • 1947 J. Shelton You Are Forbidden! in Thrilling Wonder Stories June 93/2 page image Jerry Shelton bibliography

    Sending you patient, Earthian rank of Younger, Ben Bradbury. Would run case myself but since he is friend, feel he has been too close to me for that.

  • 1950 ‘G. Vance’ Brothers Under Skin in Amazing Stories Nov. 83/1 page image bibliography

    Lipars look a good deal like the Earthian camel, except that they have three humps on their backs, and are quite a bit larger.

  • 1951 G. Conklin in Possible Worlds Science Fiction x Groff Conklin

    BEMs are what science fictioneers call the more horrendous (and juvenile) forms of extra-Earthian life with which the writers of standard space operas used to delight in peopling their alien worlds.

  • 1951 R. A. Heinlein Letter 3 June in R. A. Heinlein & V. Heinlein Grumbles from Grave (1990) 62 Robert A. Heinlein

    It is not actually related to any earthian life form; there is plenty of elbow room for the artist to use his imagination.

  • 1952 W. Kubilius & F. Pratt Second Chance in Fantastic Story Magazine Sept. 93/1

    I am to present you with these figures, and offer the Western Alliance a certain number of our rockets for joint attempts to explore and colonize either Venus or Mars, the pro tempore colonial government to be neither Cominworld nor Western Alliance, but simply Earthian.

  • 1955 R. Matheson Miss Stardust in Startling Stories Spring 100/2 page image Richard Matheson bibliography

    Earthian math is lost on him.

  • 1959 S. Palmer Derelict in Fantastic Universe Mar. 79/2

    When the call to Battle Stations sounded, most of the crew of the raider were engaged in their usual pleasant pastime of speculating as to the bedroom talents of Earthian females and as to the potency of Earthian beverages.

  • 1966 R. A. Lafferty Primary Education of the Camiroi in Galaxy Science Fiction Dec. 184/2 page image R. A. Lafferty bibliography

    Colloquial English is one of the six Earthian languages required here, you know.

  • 1983 R. Silverberg Amanda & Alien in Coll. Stories (1993)I. 134 Robert Silverberg

    Is this a typical Earthian home?

  • 1997 A. C. Clarke 3001: Final Odyssey Sources 255 Arthur C. Clarke

    I foresaw Earthian traffic vertically ascending to the bridge, revolving and descending at preferred Earth loci.

  • 1999 S. Dedman Unequal Laws in Science Fiction Age Mar. 41/1

    Maybe they thought that their freedom to build themselves a homeworld was more important than their safety. After all, they had the numbers, all volunteers, and the Forrest and their equipment were all paid for…I don’t know much about Earthian politics, but I don’t see how they could have stopped them going.

  • 2012 H. Hickham Crater xx. 161 Homer Hickam bibliography

    Gillie believes it is the Earthian animal known as a horse.

Research requirements

antedating 1907
Research History
Irene Grumman submitted a 1999 cite from Stephen Dedman's "Unequal Laws".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1947 cite from Jerry Shelton's "You Are Forbidden!".
Fred Galvin submitted a cite from a 1953 reprint of Hugh Frazier Parker's 1943 "The Sword of Johnny Damokles".
Fred Galvin submitted a cite from a 1970 reprint of R. A. Lafferty's 1966 "Primary Education of the Camiroi"; Mike Christie verified it in the first magazine appearance.
Fred Galvin submitted a cite from a 1958 reprint of Ray Bradbury's 1946 "The Million Year Picnic"
Fred Galvin submitted a 1952 cite from Gerald Vance's "Brothers Under the Skin".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1947 cite from Henry Hasse's "Trail of the Astrogar".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1942 cite from Planet Stories.
Fred Galvin submitted a 1949 cite from Henry Hasse's "Eternal Zemmd Must Die!".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1952 cite from Walter Kubilius and Fletcher Pratt's "Second Chance".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1955 cite from Richard Matheson's "Miss Stardust".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1959 cite from Stuart Palmer's "Derelict".
Fred Galvin submitted a cite from a 1951 reprint of Frank Belknap Long's "Cones"; Mike Christie checked the first magazine appearance in the February, 1936 Astounding Stories, and found that the term was not used there.
Fred Galvin submitted a cite from a 1968 reprint of I. S. Shklovskii and Carl Sagan's 1966 "Intelligent Life in the Universe".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1952 cite from James Blish's "Bridge".
Fred Galvin submitted a 1951 cite from Groff Conklin's "Possible Worlds of Science Fiction".
Bee Ostrowsky submitted a 2012 cite from Homer Hickam.

The OED found a 1907 cite in the New York Times, in a SF context.

Last modified 2024-11-17 00:09:25
In the compilation of some entries, HDSF has drawn extensively on corresponding entries in OED.