Odal
/ˈoʊ.dəl/noun
Relating to inherited or allodial land, especially in Scandinavian and Germanic legal tradition.
Did you know?The odal rune, ᛟ, represented inherited property and ancestry; it was later appropriated by Nazi organizations, giving an ancient inheritance symbol a disturbing modern history.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*ōþalą
“Inherited estate, ancestral property, or homeland”
Old English
OE
ēþel
“Homeland, native land, or noble lineage”
Old Norse
Old Norse
óðal
“Inherited property, especially land passed down within a family”
Viking Age
Runic Norse
ᛟ óðal
“The odal rune, associated with inheritance, ancestral land, and kinship”
19th Century
English
odal
“Relating to inherited or allodial land, adopted from Scandinavian and Germanic usage”
Modern English
English
odal
“A rare legal or historical term for hereditary, allodial property”