eastern meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

eastern

adjalso spelled Eastern

UK /ˈiː.stən/ · US /ˈi.stɚn/

Etymology From Middle English esturne, esterne, from Old English ēasterne (“eastern”), from Proto-Germanic *austrōnijaz (“eastern”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ews-ro- (“eastern”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ews- (“dawn, east”). Cognate with Old Saxon and Old High German ōstrōni (“eastern”), Old Norse austrœnn (“eastern”). Morphologically east + -ern.

Of, facing, situated in, or related to the east.

While De Anza was exploring the Bay of San Francisco, seeking a site for the presidio, the American colonists on the eastern seaboard, three thousand miles away, were celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence.1948, Carey McWilliams, North from Mexico / The Spanish-Speaking People of The United States, J. B. Lippincott Company, page 25:
The “little green men”—faces covered, wearing unmarked olive uniforms, speaking Russian and using Russian weapons—have played a significant role in both the occupation of Crimea and the civil war in eastern Ukraine.¹⁹⁶2015, Shane R. Reeves, David Wallace, “The Combatant Status of the “Little Green Men” and Other Participants in the Ukraine Conflict”, in International Law Studies, US Naval War College, volume 91, number 361, Stockton Center for the Study of International Law, page 393:

1 more example

Another ANC splinter party, the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK), led by former President Jacob Zuma appears to be on course to do well in KwaZulu-Natal, the eastern coastal province where Durban is located.2024 May 30, Sarah Dean and David McKenzie, “First results in South Africa’s election suggest it is heading for biggest political shift since apartheid”, in CNN:

Of a wind Blowing from the east; easterly.

Broadly Oriental.

Derived terms: 87 terms
Adamawa-Eastern, Australian Eastern Daylight Time, Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Eastern Armenia, eastern baccharis, eastern banjo frog, eastern bearded dragon, Eastern Bloc, eastern bluebird, Eastern Bontok, Eastern Buyagan, eastern buzzard, Eastern Christian, eastern columbine, eastern coneflower, eastern cottonwood, eastern crevice skink, eastern crown, eastern curlew, Eastern Delaware, Eastern Desert, eastern equine encephalitis, easterner, Eastern Europe, Eastern Friesland, Eastern Front, eastern gorilla, eastern gray squirrel, eastern green drake, eastern grey kangaroo, eastern hemisphere, eastern hemlock, Eastern Herzegovinian, eastern imperial eagle, eastern indigo snake, easternisation, easternise, easternism, easternization, easternize, eastern jackrabbit, eastern kingsnake, eastern leatherwood, easternly, eastern moa, easternmost, easternness, Eastern Norway, eastern olivaceous warbler, eastern Orphean warbler, Eastern Pacific giant conch, Eastern Palestine, eastern paradise whydah, Eastern parotia, eastern pellitory-of-the-wall, eastern poison ivy, Eastern provinces, eastern ratsnake, eastern redbud, eastern red cedar, Eastern Region, eastern ringed xenica, eastern rosella, Eastern Rumelia, eastern screech owl, eastern spinebill, eastern spotted skunk, Eastern Standard Time Zone, eastern tarantula, eastern tent caterpillar, Eastern Theater, Eastern Time Zone, Eastern Townships, Eastern Wao, Eastern War Time Zone, eastern water dragon, eastern white pine, eastern wolf, Eastern Woodlands, eastern wood pewee, eastern yellow robin, eastern yellow wagtail, Far Eastern Federal District, Mideastern, noneastern, north-eastern, south-eastern
Related terms: northern, southern, western, northeastern, southeastern, southwestern, northwestern

Eastern

adj

Of a region designated as the East by convention or from the perspective of the speaker or author.

The noble steamer Atlantic, after a most favorable passage of twelve days, carried our friends safely to the desired port of Liverpool. As Natalie stood once again upon terra firma, she could hardly credit that over three thousand miles of ocean separated her from her home,—that the same waves which washed the shores of her cherished island, broke upon the shores of this Eastern world.1859, Ferna Vale, Natalie; or, A Gem Among the Sea-Weeds:

Of the Christian churches originating in the church of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Eastern Orthodox.