Riparians

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Relating to the land along the banks of a river or stream, often associated with water rights and ecological considerations
2. Characterizing areas adjacent to water bodies that may influence and be influenced by the aquatic ecosystem
3. Pertaining to both the physical geography and legal aspects regarding ownership and usage of riverside lands

Etymology: "Riparian" is a Latin borrowing, and its Latin parent meant something quite literal: rīpārius described the bank of a river. Latin rīpa, "bank" or "shore," is the root, and the adjective was built on it with a suffix that gave the sense "relating to." English took the adjective whole and added its own -an ending, the same suffix found in words like "American" or "Victorian," so the term came to mean "relating to a riverbank" in English as well. Riparians is simply the plural of that adjective used as a noun, so it refers to people who live on or own land along a river or lake. The word's modern sense, areas beside water that interact with the aquatic ecosystem, is a later extension of the original riverbank meaning, widened to cover lakes, streams, and wetlands in ecological and legal discussion.