fealty
American Heritage Dictionary:
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fe·al·ty
(fē'əl-tē) 
n., pl., -ties.
n., pl., -ties.
- The fidelity owed by a vassal to his feudal lord.
- The oath of such fidelity.
- Faithfulness; allegiance. See synonyms at fidelity.
[Middle English fealtye, from Old French fealte, from Latin fidēlitās, faithfulness, from fidēlis, faithful, from fidēs, faith.]
Roget's Thesaurus:
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fealty
noun
- Faithfulness or devotion to a person, a cause, obligations, or duties: allegiance, constancy, faithfulness, fidelity, loyalty, steadfastness. See continue/stop/pause, obligation.
Barron's Law Dictionary:
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fealty
Word Tutor:
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fealty
IN BRIEF: Loyalty or allegiance.
The tenant farmer had to swear an oath of fealty to the owner of the property.
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Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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Fealty
This article is about a pledge of allegiance. For the journalist, see Mick Fealty. For the novel by Niven and Pournelle, see Oath of Fealty (novel).
| English Feudalism |
|---|
Harold Sacramentum Fecit Willelmo Duci
(Harold makes an oath to Duke William) King Harold becomes the vassal of Duke William of Normandy (Bayeux Tapestry) |
| Fief |
| Overlord, Vassal |
| Enfeoffment |
| Subinfeudation |
| Feoffee |
| Feudal land tenure |
| Fealty, Homage |
| Feudalism in England |
| Feudalism |
An oath of fealty, from the Latin fidelitas (faithfulness), is a pledge of allegiance of one person to another. Typically the oath is made upon a religious object such as a Bible or saint's relic, often contained within an altar, thus binding the oath-taker before God.
In medieval Europe, fealty was sworn between two people, the obliged person (vassal) and a person of rank (lord). This was done as part of a formal commendation ceremony to create a feudal relationship.
Fealty and homage are a key element of feudalism.
The term is also used by English-speakers to refer to similar oaths of allegiance in other feudal cultures, as with medieval Japan, as well as in modern political contexts.
See also
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Look up fealty in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
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Translations:
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Fealty
Dansk (Danish)
n. - troskab, vasalpligt
Nederlands (Dutch)
trouw, trouw van horige aan zijn heer
Français (French)
n. - fidélité
Deutsch (German)
n. - Lehnstreue, Treue
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - πίστη και αφοσίωση (σε φεουδάρχη)
Português (Portuguese)
n. - lealdade (f)
Русский (Russian)
верность, присяга
Español (Spanish)
n. - fidelidad, lealtad
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - länsplikt
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
忠诚, 忠实, 忠贞
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 忠誠, 忠實, 忠貞
한국어 (Korean)
n. - 신의, 성실, 충성의 의무
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 忠誠の義務, 忠節の誓い
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) إخلاص , وفاء
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - נאמנות, אמונים
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Copyrights:
American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Roget's Thesaurus
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Barron's Law Dictionary
Law Dictionary. Copyright © 2003 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Wikipedia on Answers.com
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Fealty.
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