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villeinage

or vil·lain·age, vil·lan·age, vil·len·age

[ vil-uh-nij ]

/ ˈvɪl ə nɪdʒ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR villeinage ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the tenure by which a villein held land and tenements from a lord.

the condition or status of a villein.

Origin of villeinage

1275–1325; Middle English vilenage < Anglo-French, Old French. See villein, -age

Words nearby villeinage

villavicencio, ville-de-paris, villeda morales, villein, villein socage, villeinage, villella, villeneuve, villeurbanne, villi, villiers

Example sentences from the Web for villeinage

Against a background of villeinage and week-work, the borough begins to stand out as the scene of burgage tenure.

Domesday Book and Beyond |Frederic William Maitland
In Scotland they had just been emancipated from the status of villeinage.

Recent Developments in European Thought |Various
We have watched them shake off many of the restrictions imposed by villeinage and build up considerable properties.

The Agrarian Problem in the Sixteenth Century |Richard Henry Tawney
Meanwhile, one great portion of our villeinage in our larger towns we have much mitigated.

Harold, Complete |Edward Bulwer-Lytton

Britton, who wrote in the reign of Edward I., thus describes this tenure under the name of Villeinage.

Legal Lore |Various

British Dictionary definitions for villeinage

villeinage

villainage

/ (ˈvɪlənɪdʒ) /

noun (in medieval Europe)

the status and condition of a villein

the tenure by which a villein held his land