Akennan : of land.

A small tenant holding an acre

Alien : In this context, one who had not been granted privileges by the Crown and who was unable to hold or inherit land.

Armiger : Strictly speaking, a person entitled to bear a coat of arms, but also a term used to denote a Gentleman or an Esquire.

Atheling : The Anglo-Saxon term to denote a relative of the king and, as a consequence, in control of large areas.

Baronet : An hereditary title created in 1611, superior to that of a knight, but not of peerage rank. He is addressed as 'Sir' and after his surname the abbreviation 'Bart.' is used. His wife is addressed as Lady and his children as Mr, Miss or Mrs.

Bordar : A villein cottager and one of the lowest ranks in feudal society. He had some land for subsistence but he was obliged to perform agricultural and menial services for the lord free or for a fixed sum.

Burgess : (a) A citizen of a borough having full municipal rights, and, (b) A Member of Parliament for a borough or corporate town.

Ceorl : An Old English term for a free peasant ranking above a Serf but below a Thane or Gesith. He was obliged to do military service and keep up bridges and defences. The monetary value put on his life (wergild), was usually 200 shillings. After the Norman Conquest his status declined to that of a Bordar, or Villein. Alternatively called Carl, Carlot, Churl.

Cottar : A cottager, sometimes with a smallholding. He was obliged to labour on the lord's land either free or for a fixed sum.

Dame : A style of address which was once applied to the wives of baronets and knights, or else to the wives of prominent citizens, or merely to elderly women.

Denizen : An alien admitted to citizenship by royal letters patent. He was able to hold and devise land, but not to inherit it; neither could he hold public office.

Electioner : A person eligible to be elected to a parish office.

Eorl : An Anglo-Saxon aristocrat, sometimes synonymous with Ealdorman, who was in charge of a shire.

Esquire : Originally an attendant to a knight or lord and responsible for carrying shield and armour. The term later denoted a status above that of a Gentleman, but in the 19th century became merely a courtesy title.

Foreigner : A resident of a town who was not a citizen or, more specifically, not a member of a guild.

Franklin : A free tenant, usually of the wealthier sort; the predecessor of the Yeoman.

Freeman :

(a) A tenant who held his land of the lord at a fixed rent and without the obligation of feudal services,

(b) Before the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, a citizen entitled to claim a share of the profits of his city or borough, and to claim exemption from tolls. The title is now an honorary one conferred by a city or corporation.

(c) A man who has served his apprenticeship and is thus free to pursue his trade in his locality.

Gebur: An Old English term for a free peasant within the strata of society called Ceorls (qv), having a status between that of Geneat and Cottar. The monetary value placed on his life (wergild) was 200 shillings. Subsequently the term was shortened to the uncomplimentary 'Boor'.

Geneat : An Old English term for a free peasant within the strata of society called Ceorls (qv), having a status superior to that of a Gebur (qv). The monetary value placed on his life (wergild) was 200 shillings. In the Middle Ages his equivalent was a Radknight (qv).

Gentleman : In this context, a well-born man above the rank of yeoman, usually entitled to bear a coat of arms. It was assumed that a Gentleman did not do manual work and the term gradually encompassed all those in the professions.

Gesith : A companion to the king and part of his household and warband; he was rewarded with gifts of land. In the Teutonic kingdoms of England, excepting Kent, the Gesith was an aristocrat. By the 9th century the term was replaced by that of Thane. The monetary value placed on his life (wergild) was 1,200 shillings.

Hold : A Scandinavian term used in Northumbria in the 10th and 11th centuries to denote a nobleman.

Husbandman : A tenant farmer.

Intrante : A person admitted to live and trade within a city or borough on payment of an annual fine.

Knight : Knights were originally obliged to perform military service in exchange for the lands granted to them (Knight's Fees). This duty was gradually commuted to a regular fine called 'scutage'. A knight and his wife are styled Sir and Lady.

Lackland : A person who owned no land.

Laet : A social group in Kent in Anglo-Saxon times, between free and servile status. Its members had the rights of a free peasant but had to perform some villein services.

Laird : A Scottish and north-country term for a lord or large landowner.

Mesne Lord : A lord who held land directly of the Crown and who was above other lords in status.

Miss and Mrs : Originally Miss was a style of address for a man's mistress. Other women, married or unmarried, in the same social class as a man who was addressed as 'Mr' were styled Mrs. By the 18th century Miss was used to denote a young spinster bride and Mrs to denote an older or married woman.

Mr : An abbreviation of the word Master, and originally a style of address for a Gentleman. In 19th-century directories however, Mr. usually denotes a tradesman or someone who had no claim to be called gentry.

Neife : A villein (qv).

Nobility : The five ranks of peerage in descending order of precedence are Duke, Marquess, Earl, Viscount and Baron (Lord). They may be summarised as follows:

Duke: The first Dukedom in England was created in 1337 when the Black Prince was created Duke of Cornwall. The title then took precedence over other noble titles. His wife is known as a duchess, his eldest son takes his father's second title, and the younger children are addressed as Lord or Lady before their Christian names. The term Duke derives from the word dux, meaning leader of an army.

Marquess: The first Marquess was appointed in 1385. Except on formal occasions he and his wife are referred to as Lord and Lady, and their children as Lord and Lady before their Christian names. The term Marquess (Marquis in France) is derived from those barons who held and guarded lands on the borders or marches of a kingdom.

Earl: Before the Norman Conquest the Earl was the highest rank of nobility and acted as the king's representative in charge of a shire; subsequently the title denoted a dignity rather than a function. The wife of an earl is a countess but except on formal occasions he and his wife are addressed as Lord and Lady. His eldest son takes his father's second title, the younger sons are styled 'Honourable', and the daughters as Lady before their Christian names.

Viscount: The first Viscount in the English nobility was created in 1440, but previously the term denoted a sheriff of a county acting as deputy to the Earl of the shire; the word derived from the Latin vicecomes. A Viscount and his wife are styled Lord and Lady.

Baron: The title Baron, more commonly styled Lord, is the most numerous rank in the nobility. A greater baron was one summoned by direct writ to the king's council, and a lesser baron was one who was summoned via the county sheriff. Peers of the realm are the successors to the greater barons. A baron and his wife are styled Lord and Lady, and his children 'The Honourable' on formal occasions and Mr, Miss and Mrs otherwise. A peeress (Baroness) in her own right who marries a commoner retains her title, but a peeress by marriage loses her title on remarriage.

Peder : A Lincolnshire term for a Cottar (qv) or cottager.

Radknight : A tenant who gave service on horseback to his lord as an obligation of his landholding.

Regardant Villein : A person who performed the lowest manorial services but was annexed to the lord's manor rather than to his person. He was distinct in this from a Villein in Gross, who was transferable from one owner to another.

Serf : An inhabitant with a status lower than that of a Villein (qv), who was annexed to the lord's person and could be sold to another person. His freedom was obtained when the lord granted a release called Manumission.

Slave : In this country slaves officially became free in 1772.

Socman : A free tenant.

Sojoumer : A temporary resident in a parish.

Squire : A common term for a lord of the manor, or a principal landowner.

Stranger : A new resident.

Thane : An Old English term for one who was part of the king's or a lord's household and his military elite. The word seems to have superseded the term Gesith in the 9th century. The Thane had a monetary value on his life (wergild) of 1,200 shillings. Alternatively spelt Thegn.

Theow : An Anglo-Saxon slave, either a conquered native or an Anglo-Saxon felon. He had no rights whatsoever.

Thrall : A Slave.

Vassal : A person who held land of a lord and swore fealty to him.

Vavassor : A term dating from the Norman Conquest to denote a free tenant of high status but with less land than that held by a baron, and who had military obligations to his lord. The word was used in Danelaw counties. He was the forerunner of the Knight.

Villein : A general term to describe an unfree tenant after the Norman Conquest. He held his land subject to a range of agricultural services and fines. He was above the status of a slave but was, excepting the Regardant Villein (qv), usually annexed to the lord's person, in which case he was termed a Villein in Gross. Neither he nor his daughter could marry without the lord's permission, nor could he bring a suit in the king's court, or acquire land that would not be taxed. Upon his death a heriot (fine) was paid by his heirs. In return he had a landholding and the right to graze a fixed number of cattle on the common pastures and to take hay from the common meadow.

The loss of population resulting from the Black Death put the Villein into a better bargaining position and his tenure gradually became Copyhold (qv).

Yeoman : A free tenant, usually a prominent farmer. As he worked with his hands he could not be styled a Gentleman (qv) but his status was above that of most other copyhold tenants. He was qualified to serve on juries and vote in county elections.