Allod
/ˈæl.ɒd/noun
Land held in full ownership rather than from a feudal lord or under a tenancy obligation.
Did you know?Allodial ownership became a powerful legal contrast to feudal tenure: the allod-holder owed no customary service or rent to a superior lord.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*alōdą
“An entire possession or hereditary property; reconstructed Germanic source”
Early Medieval Period
Frankish
alōd
“Family property or land held as one's own, without a feudal superior”
8th–9th Century
Medieval Latin
allodium
“Land held in full ownership, contrasted with beneficium or dependent tenure”
11th–12th Century
Old French
alod
“Freehold land or an estate not burdened by feudal dues”
14th Century
Anglo-French
alode
“Land possessed freely and hereditarily”
Modern English
English
allod
“Land held absolutely rather than feudally”