(condensed from howstuffworks.com)
The word "earth" has roots in the Old English term "eorþe." Eorþe also meant "soil," "dirt," "ground," "dry land" and "country."
Old English evolved from a parent language that scholars call Proto-Germanic. The German that's spoken today is part of the same linguistic family. "Earth" and "eorþe" are therefore related to the modern German word Erde. Erde can also be used to refer to dirt and soil.
Our dear Earth has relatives in some other languages, too. For example, there's the Old Saxon ertha, the Old Frisian erthe and the Dutch word aarde. All these likely descend from a Proto-Germanic term that was never recorded.
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