terran (adj.)

"of or pertaining to the planet Earth," 1881, in science fiction writing, from Latin terra "earth" (from PIE root *ters- "to dry"). Also used as a noun meaning "inhabitant of the Earth" (1953). An earlier form, terrene was used in Middle English in sense of "belonging to this world, earthly, secular, temporal" (c. 1300), later, "of the Earth as a planet" (1630s).

updated on May 13, 2017