The Rice University Neologisms Database

Someone who earns his living by negotiating land rights Intended Meaning: someone who earns his living by negotiating land rights Analysis: land describes what the work concerns, and man is a simple reference to the fact that the person referred to is male. Combining the two parts into one provides a short way of conveying a person’s job, though some further details might be needed for clarification Possible Reason Used: My friend wanted a succinct way to describe his father’s job. Because his father writes contracts negotiating the rights to pieces of land, my friend decided to describe his father as a landman. Also, my friend comes from western Texas and likes to be a little bit of a hick at times, so he did not want to use the term lawyer or something equally formal.