The meaning of the word lord

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler.^[1][2] The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are entitled to courtesy titles. The collective «Lords» can refer to a group or body of peers.

Etymology[edit]

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, the etymology of the word can be traced back to the Old English word hlāford which originated from hlāfweard meaning «loaf-ward» or «bread-keeper», reflecting the Germanic tribal custom of a chieftain providing food for his followers.^[3] The appellation «lord» is primarily applied to men, while for women the appellation «lady» is used. This is no longer universal: the Lord of Mann, a title previously held by the Queen of the United Kingdom, and female Lords Mayor are examples of women who are styled as «Lord».

Historical usage[edit]

Feudalism[edit]

Under the feudal system, «lord» had a wide, loose and varied meaning. An overlord was a person from whom a landholding or a manor was held by a mesne lord or vassal under various forms of feudal land tenure. The modern term «landlord» is a vestigial survival of this function. A liege lord was a person to whom a vassal owed sworn allegiance. Neither of these terms were titular dignities, but rather factual appellations, which described the relationship between two or more persons within the highly stratified feudal social system. For example, a man might be lord of the manor to his own tenants but also a vassal of his own overlord, who in turn was a vassal of the King. Where a knight was a lord of the manor, he was referred to in contemporary documents as «John (Surname), knight, lord of (manor name)». A feudal baron was a true titular dignity, with the right to attend Parliament, but a feudal baron, Lord of the Manor of many manors, was a vassal of the King.

Manors[edit]

The substantive title of «lord of the manor» came into use in the English medieval system of feudalism after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The title «Lord of the Manor» was a titular feudal dignity which derived its force from the existence and operation of a manorial court or court baron at which he or his steward presided, thus he was the lord of the manorial court which determined the rules and laws which were to govern all the inhabitants and property covered by the jurisdiction of the court. To the tenants of a certain class of manor known in Saxon times as Infangenthef^[4] their lord was a man who had the power of exercising capital punishment over them. The term invariably used in contemporary mediaeval documents is simply «lord of X», X being the name of the manor. The term «Lord of the Manor» is a recent usage of historians to distinguish such lords from feudal barons and other powerful persons referred to in ancient documents variously as «Sire» (mediaeval French), «Dominus» (Latin), «Lord» etc. The title of «Lord of the Manor» is recognised by the British Government for any such title registered at His Majesty’s Land Registry before 13 October 2003 (the commencement date of the Land Registration Act 2002) but after that date titles can no longer be registered, and any such titles voluntarily de-registered by the holder cannot later be re-registered. However any transfer of ownership of registered manors will continue to be recorded in the register, on the appropriate notification. Thus in effect the register is closed for new registrations.^[5] Such titles are legally classified as «incorporeal hereditaments» as they have no physical existence,^[6] and usually have no intrinsic value. However a lucrative market arose in the 20th century for such titles, often for purposes of vanity, which was assisted by the existence of an official register, giving the purchaser the impression of a physical existence. Whether a title of «Lord of the Manor» is registered or unregistered has no effect on its legal validity or existence, which is a matter of law to be determined by the courts. Modern legal cases have been won by persons claiming rights as lords of the manor over village greens. The heads of many ancient English land-owning families have continued to be lords of the manor of lands they have inherited.

The UK Identity and Passport Service will include such titles on a British passport as an «observation» (e.g., ‘The Holder is the Lord of the Manor of X’), provided the holder can provide documentary evidence of ownership.^[7] The United States ^[8] forbids the use of all titles on passports. Australia forbids the use of titles on passports if those titles have not been awarded by the Crown (in reference to the Australian Monarchy) or the Commonwealth (in reference to the Australian Government).^[9]

Laird[edit]

The Scottish title Laird is a shortened form of ‘laverd’ which is an old Scottish word deriving from an Anglo-Saxon term meaning ‘Lord’ and is also derived from the middle English word ‘Lard’ also meaning ‘Lord’. The word is generally used to refer to any owner of a landed estate and has no meaning in heraldic terms and its use is not controlled by the Lord Lyon.

Modern usage[edit]

Peers and children of peers[edit]

Lord is used as a generic term to denote members of the peerage. Five ranks of peer exist in the United Kingdom: in descending order these are duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron. The appellation «Lord» is used most often by barons, who are rarely addressed by their formal and legal title of «Baron». The most formal style is «The Lord (X)»: for example, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, can be referred to as «The Lord Tennyson», although the most common appellation is «Lord Tennyson». Marquesses, earls and viscounts are commonly also addressed as Lord. Dukes use the style «The Duke of (X)», and are not correctly referred to as «Lord (X)». Dukes are formally addressed as «Your Grace», rather than «My Lord». In the Peerage of Scotland, the members of the lowest level of the peerage have the substantive title «Lord of Parliament» rather than Baron.

«Lord» is also used as a courtesy title for younger sons of a British prince, duke, or marquesses, in the style «Lord (first name) (surname)».^[10] The eldest son of a peer would be entitled to use one of his father’s subsidiary titles (if any). For example, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent holds the subsidiary title of Earl of St Andrews, which is used by his elder son George Windsor, Earl of St Andrews, while his younger son is styled Lord Nicholas Windsor. However, if the father has no subsidiary title, the older son will assume a courtesy title of «Lord (last name)», such as in the case of the Earl of Devon. As these forms of address are merely courtesy titles, the holder is not actually a member of the peerage and is not entitled to use the definite article «The» as part of the title.

House of Lords[edit]

The upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is the House of Lords, which is an abbreviation of the full title, «The Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament Assembled». The Lords Temporal are the people who are entitled to receive writs of summons to attend the House of Lords in right of a peerage. The Lords Spiritual are the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the Bishops of London, Winchester and Durham, and the twenty-one longest-serving bishops of the Church of England from among the other bishops (plus some female bishops of shorter service in consequence of the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015), who are all entitled to receive writs of summons in right of their bishoprics or archbishoprics.

The Lords Temporal greatly outnumber the Lords Spiritual, there being nearly 800 of the former and only 26 of the latter. As of December 2016, 92 Lords Temporal sit in the House in right of hereditary peerages (that being the maximum number allowed under the House of Lords Act 1999) and 19 sit in right of judicial life peerages under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876. The rest are life peers under the Life Peerages Act 1958.

Judiciary[edit]

Until the creation of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2009), certain judges sat in the House of Lords by virtue of holding life peerages. Most of them (those who were members of the Appellate Committee) were known collectively as the Law Lords. All judges, including former Law Lords, lost the right to sit and vote in the House of Lords, despite retaining their life peerages, upon creation of the Supreme Court. The appellation «Lord», though not the style, is also used to refer to some judges in certain Commonwealth legal systems, who are not peers. Some such judges, for instance judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, are called «Lord Justice». Other Commonwealth judges, for example judges of Canadian provincial supreme courts, are known only as Justices but are addressed with deference in court as ‘My Lord’, ‘My Lady’, ‘Your Lordship’ or ‘Your Ladyship’.

Examples of judges who use the appellation «lord» include:

• Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom not holding peerages, who are addressed as if they were life peers by Royal Warrant.^[11] Wives of male justices who are not peers are addressed as if they were wives of peers. These forms of address are applicable both in court and in social contexts.
• Judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, known as ‘Lords Justices of Appeal’.
• Judges of the Scottish Court of Session, known as ‘Lords of Council and Session’.
• Justices of the Canadian provincial Supreme Courts, addressed in Court as «My Lord» or «My Lady» and referred to in legal literature as «Lordships» or «Ladyships».
• Judges of the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts of India, who are addressed as «My Lord» and «Your Lordship» in court. The Bar Council of India calls upon lawyers to give up this practice of addressing judges as ‘lords’.

Ecclesiastical[edit]

In Great Britain and Ireland, and in most countries that are members or former members of the Commonwealth, bishops may be addressed as «My Lord» or «My Lord Bishop» or «Your Lordship», particularly on formal occasions. This usage is not restricted to those bishops who sit in the House of Lords. Indeed, by custom, it is not restricted to bishops of the Church of England but applies to bishops of the Church in Wales, the Scottish Episcopal Church, and the Roman Catholic Church, and may be applied (though less commonly) to bishops of other Christian denominations. It has become more common to use simply the one word «Bishop».

In the United States, bishops are addressed as «Excellency».

Chancellors, councillors and privy seal keepers[edit]

Various other high offices of state in the United Kingdom, Commonwealth and Republic of Ireland are prefixed with the deferential appellation of «lord» such as Lord Chancellor, Lord Privy Seal, Lord President of the Council, and Lord Mayor. Holders of these offices are not ex officio peers, although the holders of some of the offices were in the past always peers.

Non-English equivalents[edit]

In most cultures in Europe an equivalent appellation denoting deference exists. The French term Mon Seigneur («My Lord»), shortened to the modern French Monsieur, derives directly from the Latin seniorem, meaning «elder, senior».^[12] From this Latin source derived directly also the Italian Signore, the Spanish Señor, the Portuguese Senhor.

Non-Romance languages have their own equivalents. Of the Germanic family there is the Dutch Meneer/Mijnheer/De Heer (as in: aan de heer Joren Jansen), German Herr, and Danish Herre. All three of these stem from a Germanic title of respect (in this case, from the Proto-Germanic root *haira-, «hoary, venerable, grey», likely a loan translation of Latin seniorem).^[13]
In other European languages there is Welsh Arglwydd, Hungarian Úr, Greek Kyrie, Polish Pan, Czech pán, Breton Aotrou, Albanian Zoti.

In several Indian languages there are: Hindi Swami, Prabhu, Thakur, Samprabhu(Overlord) also words like Saheb or Laat Saheb from Lord Saheb were once used but have changed in meaning now, Telugu Prabhuvu, Tamil Koman, Kannada Dore, Bengali Probhu, Gujarati Swami, Punjabi Su’āmī, Nepali Prabhu. Words like Swami and Prabhu are Sanskrit-origin words, common in many Indian languages.

Philippine languages have different words for «lord», some of which are cognates. Tagalog has Panginoón for «lord» in both the noble and the religious senses. Its root, ginoo, is also found in Visayan languages like Cebuano as the term for «lord». Ginoo is also the Tagalog root for Ginoóng, the modern equivalent of the English term «Mister» (akin to how Romance language terms like señor may be glossed as either «lord», «mister», or «sir»). Ilocano meanwhile employs Apo for «Lord» in religious contexts; it is a particle that generally accords respect to an addressee of higher status than the speaker.

In the Yoruba language of West Africa, the words Olu and Oluwa are used in much the same way as the English term. Olodumare, the Yoruba conception of God Almighty, is often referred to using either of these two words. In the Yoruba chieftaincy system, meanwhile, the Oluwo of Iwo’s royal title translates to «Lord of Iwo». In Lagos, the Oluwa of Lagos is one of that kingdom’s most powerful chiefs.

Religion[edit]

English speakers use the word «Lord» as a title of deference for various gods or deities. The earliest recorded use of «Lord» in the English language in a religious context occurred in the work of English scholars such as Bede (c.  673 – 735). However, Bede wrote in Latin (Michael Lapidge describes him as «without question the most accomplished Latinist produced in these islands in the Anglo-Saxon period»^[14]). He used an Anglo-Saxon phrase^[which?] that indicated a noble, prince, ruler or lord to refer to God; however, he applied this as a gloss to the Latin text that he was producing, and not as a clear translation of the term itself. «Lord», as a gloss to Old English dryhten, meant «royal», «ruler», «prince», or «noble», and did not indicate a deity. After the 11th-century Norman invasion of England and the influx of Norman-French-speaking clerics, this understanding began to be applied to religious texts as well, but that occurred during the later Middle Ages and not in Bede’s early-medieval period. The word «Lord» appears frequently in the King James Bible of the early 17th century. See also Jesus is Lord.

• English-language Old Testament translations such as the King James Version usually render the Hebrew name YHWH (the Tetragrammaton) as «the LORD» with small caps. This usage follows the Jewish practice of substituting the spoken Hebrew word «Adonai» («My Lords») for appearances of YHWH.^[15]
• In Christianity, New Testament translations into English often refer to Jesus as «Lord» or «the Lord», translating Greek κύριος.
• In Aramaic, the title Mar, which means «Lord», is used for saints, ecclesiastical figures, and Jesus.
• Semitic religions gave other deities appellations corresponding to «Lord» including:
  • Baʿal («Lord»), as used by the Canaanites both as a generic term of address to various local deities and as the spoken name for the storm god Baʿal Haddu once the form «Hadad» became too sacred for any but his high priest to utter.
  • Similarly, Tammuz came to be addressed as «Adoni» («My Lord»).
• In the non-Semitic Sumerian culture, En means «Lord», as in the names of Sumerian deities such as Enki and Enlil.
• In Buddhism, Gautama Buddha is often called «Lord Buddha».
• In Jainism, «Lord» refers to the Mahavira.
• In Ancient Greece, the name Adonis was a form of the Semitic Adoni.
• In Old Norse, the names Freyr and Freya may have the meaning «Lord» and «Lady».
• The Wiccan God is often referred to as «The Lord» and the Wiccan Goddess as «The Lady», or in the combination «Lord and Lady» (in this form, the definite article «the» is usually omitted), usually in reference to a mythological pairing such as Cernunos and Cerridwen.
• In Mormonism it is believed that Jesus was the YHVH (Jehovah) of the Old Testament in his pre-mortal existence, and since that name is translated as «the Lord» in the King James Bible, in Mormonism «the Lord» refers to Jesus. Elohim, a separate individual who is the father of Jesus, is generally referred to by Mormons as «God» or «Heavenly Father». (See Mormon cosmology for references.)
• In Hindu theology, the Svayam Bhagavan may refer to the concept of the Absolute representation of the monotheistic God. Another name more commonly used in Hindu theology is Ishvara, meaning «The Lord», the personal god consisting of the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. In common parlance, ‘Lord’ is used before many deities, for example, Lord Shiva, Lord Ganesha, Lord Rama etc.
• Islam: The English term «Lord» is often used to translate the Arabic term rabb (Arabic: رب).

Titles[edit]

Historical usage

• Europe:
  • Lord Bishop
  • Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom
  • Lord High Constable
  • Lord High Steward
  • Lord High Treasurer
  • Lord Protector
• Asia:
  • Nguyễn lords
  • Trịnh lords

Present usage:

• Lord Chamberlain
• Lord Chancellor
• Lord Commissioner of Justiciary
• Lord High Admiral
• Lord Justice Clerk
• Lord Marshal
• Lord of Council and Session
• Lord of the Isles
• Lord of the Treasury
• Lord President of the Court of Session
• Lord Rector
• Lord Steward

See also[edit]

• Forms of address in the United Kingdom
• Heerlijkheid
• Lord’s Prayer
• Milord
• False titles of nobility

References[edit]

External links[edit]

English[edit]

Wikiquote

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English lord and lorde (attested from the 15th century), from earlier (14th century) lourde and other variants which dropped the intervocalic consonant of earlier lowerd, louerd, loverd, laford, and lhoaverd; from Old English hlāford < hlāfweard, a compound of hlāf (“bread”) + weard (“guardian”); see loaf and ward. The term was already being applied broadly prior to the literary development of Old English and was influenced by its common use to translate Latin dominus. Compare Scots laird (“lord”), preserving a separate vowel development (from northern/Scottish Middle English lard, laverd), the Old English compound hlāf-ǣta (“servant”, literally “bread-eater”), and modern English lady, from Old English hlǣfdīġe (“bread-kneader”).^[1] The Middle English word laford was borrowed by Icelandic, where it survives as lávarður.

Pronunciation[edit]

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /lɔːd/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /lɔɹd/
• Homophone: lored (in accents with the horse-hoarse merger)
• Homophone: laud (in non-rhotic accents)
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)d

Noun[edit]

lord (plural lords)

1. (obsolete) The master of the servants of a household; (historical) the master of a feudal manor
   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], line 167:
   1. (archaic) The male head of a household, a father or husband.
      • 831, charter in Henry Sweet, The oldest English texts, 445

        Ymbe ðet lond et cert ðe hire eðelmod hire hlabard salde.

      • c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii], line 131:

      • 1815 December (indicated as 1816), [Jane Austen], chapter XVI, in Emma: […], volume III, London: […] [Charles Roworth and James Moyes] for John Murray, →OCLC, page 300:

        Yes, here I am, my good friend; and here I have been so long, that anywhere else I should think it necessary to apologise; but, the truth is, that I am waiting for my lord and master.

   2. (archaic) The owner of a house, piece of land, or other possession
      • ante 1300, Cursor Mundi, 601 f.

        Als oure lauerd has heuen in hand

        Sua suld man be lauerd of land.

      • 1480, Waterford Archives in the 10th Report of the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts (1885), App. v. 316

        All suche lordes as have gutters betuxte thar houses.

      • ante 1637, Ben Jonson, Sad Shepherd, ii. i. 36

        A mightie Lord of Swine!

      • 1697, Virgil, “The Twelfth Book of the Æneis”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

        Turnus […]
        Wrench’d from his feeble hold the shining Sword;
        And plung’d it in the Bosom of its Lord.

      • 1874, J. H. Collins, Principles of Metal Mining (1875), Gloss. 139/2

        Lord, the owner of the land in which a mine is situated is called the ‘lord’.

2. One possessing similar mastery over others; (historical) any feudal superior generally; any nobleman or aristocrat; any chief, prince, or sovereign ruler; in Scotland, a male member of the lowest rank of nobility (the equivalent rank in England is baron)
   • c. 893, Orosius’s History, i. i. §13

     Ohthere sæde his hlaforde, Ælfrede cyninge, þæt…

   • 1530, John Palsgrave, Lesclarcissement, 680/1

     It is a pytuouse case… whan subjectes rebell agaynst their naturall lorde.
   1. (historical) A feudal tenant holding his manor directly of the king
   2. A peer of the realm, particularly a temporal one
      • ante 1420, T. Hoccleve, De Regimine Principum, 442

        Men myghten lordis knowe

        By there arraye, from oþir folke.

      • 1453, Rolls of Parliament, V. 266/2

        If such persone bee of the estate of a Lord, as Duc, Marques, Erle, Viscount or Baron.

      • 1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene 1], line 18:

        Princes, and noble Lords:
        What anſwer ſhall I make to this baſe man?

      • 1614, J. Selden, Titles of Honor, 59

        Our English name Lord, whereby we and the Scots stile all such as are of the Greater Nobilitie i. Barons, as also Bishops.

      • 1900 July 21, Daily Express:

        The Englishman of to-day still dearly loves a lord.

   3. (obsolete, uncommon) A baron or lesser nobleman, as opposed to greater ones
      • 1526, W. Bonde, Pylgrimage of Perfection, i. sig. Bviiiv

        Farre excellyng the state of lordes, erles, dukes or kynges.

      • 1826, Benjamin Disraeli, Vivian Grey, II. iii. iii. 26

        The Marquess played off the two Lords and the Baronet against his former friend.

3. One possessing similar mastery in figurative senses (esp. as lord of ~)
   • ante 1300, Cursor Mundi, 782

     O wityng bath god and ill Ȝee suld be lauerds at ȝour will.

   • 1398, John Trevisa translating Bartholomew de Glanville’s De Proprietatibus Rerum (1495), viii. xvi. 322

     The sonne is the lorde of planetes.

   • 1697, Virgil, “The Third Book of the Georgics”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

     Love is Lord of all.

   • 1992 November 18, Larry David, Seinfeld, 4.11: «The Contest»:

     But are you still master of your domain?

     I am king of the county. You?

     Lord of the manor.

   1. A magnate of a trade or profession.

      The Tobacco Lords were a group of Scottish merchants and slave traders who in the 18th century made enormous fortunes by trading in tobacco.

      • 1823, W. Cobbett, Rural Rides (1885), I. 399

        Oh, Oh! The cotton Lords are tearing!

4. (astrology) The heavenly body considered to possess a dominant influence over an event, time, etc.
   • c. 1391, Geoffrey Chaucer, Treatise on the Astrolabe, ii. §4:

     The assendent, & eke the lord of the assendent, may be shapen for to be fortunat or infortunat, as thus, a fortunat assendent clepen they whan þat no wykkid planete, as Saturne or Mars, or elles the tail of the dragoun, is in þe hows of the assendent.

5. (Britain, slang, obsolete) A hunchback.
   • 1699, B.E., A new dictionary of the terms ancient and modern of the canting crew:

     Lord, a very crooked, deformed… Person.

6. (Britain, Australia, via Cockney rhyming slang, obsolete) Sixpence.
   • 1933 November 16, Times Literary Supplement, 782/1:

     Twenty years ago you might hear a sixpence described as a ‘Lord’ meaning ‘Lord of the Manor’; that is, a tanner.

Synonyms[edit]

• (master, owner): drighten, possessor, proprietor, sovereign

Derived terms[edit]

Descendants[edit]

Translations[edit]

See also[edit]

• lady

Verb[edit]

lord (third-person singular simple present lords, present participle lording, simple past and past participle lorded)

1. (intransitive and transitive) Domineer or act like a lord.

   • 1579, Immeritô [pseudonym; Edmund Spenser], “December. Aegloga Duodecima.”, in The Shepheardes Calender: […], London: […] Hugh Singleton, […], →OCLC; republished as The Shepheardes Calender […], London: […] Iohn Wolfe for Iohn Harrison the yonger, […], 1586, →OCLC:

     The grisly toadstool grown there might I see, / And loathed paddocks lording on the same.

2. (transitive) To invest with the dignity, power, and privileges of a lord; to grant the title of lord.

   • c. 1610–1611, William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act 1, Scene 2:

     He being thus lorded / Not only with what my revenue yielded, / But what my power might else exact, […] / he did believe / He was indeed the Duke

Synonyms[edit]

• (made a lord): elevate, ennoble, invest

Derived terms[edit]

• (act like a lord): lord it over

Translations[edit]

References[edit]

• “lord”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• lord at OneLook Dictionary Search

Faroese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /lɔɻʈ/

Noun[edit]

lord

1. indefinite accusative singular of lordur

Hungarian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from English lord.^[1]

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): [ˈlord]
• Hyphenation: lord
• Rhymes: -ord

Noun[edit]

lord (plural lordok)

1. an English peer of the realm or nobleman

Declension[edit]

Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)
	singular	plural
nominative	lord	lordok
accusative	lordot	lordokat
dative	lordnak	lordoknak
instrumental	lorddal	lordokkal
causal-final	lordért	lordokért
translative	lorddá	lordokká
terminative	lordig	lordokig
essive-formal	lordként	lordokként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	lordban	lordokban
superessive	lordon	lordokon
adessive	lordnál	lordoknál
illative	lordba	lordokba
sublative	lordra	lordokra
allative	lordhoz	lordokhoz
elative	lordból	lordokból
delative	lordról	lordokról
ablative	lordtól	lordoktól
non-attributive possessive — singular	lordé	lordoké
non-attributive possessive — plural	lordéi	lordokéi

Possessive forms of lord
possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	lordom	lordjaim
2nd person sing.	lordod	lordjaid
3rd person sing.	lordja	lordjai
1st person plural	lordunk	lordjaink
2nd person plural	lordotok	lordjaitok
3rd person plural	lordjuk	lordjaik

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• lord in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN

Italian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from English lord.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /ˈlɔrd/^[1]
• Rhymes: -ɔrd
• Hyphenation: lòrd

Noun[edit]

lord m (invariable)

1. lord (British aristocrat)
2. gentleman

References[edit]

Middle English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

• lorde, lhord, lourd, lourde, laverd
• lhoaverd, laford, laverd, loverd, louerd, lowerd (early)

Etymology[edit]

From Old English hlāford, hlāfweard, in turn from hlāf (“bread, loaf”) + weard (“ward, guardian, keeper”).

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /lɔːrd/
• (early) IPA^(key): /ˈlɔːwərd/, /ˈlɔːvərd/

Noun[edit]

lord (plural lordes)

1. lord (important man)
   • c. 1335-1361, William of Palerne (MS. King’s College 13), folio 71, recto, lines 4538-4539; republished as W. W. Skeat, editor, The Romance of William of Palerne‎^[2], London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1867, →OCLC, page 145:

     […] to fare out as faſt · wiþ his fader to ſpeke / ⁊ with lordesse of þat lond · þat him had long miſſed

     […] to comfortably leave to speak with his father and lords from that realm who’d missed him for a long while.

2. Lord (title of God)

Derived terms[edit]

Descendants[edit]

• English: lord (see there for further descendants)
• Scots: laird
  • → English: laird
• Yola: loard
• → Icelandic: lávarður (through laverd)

References[edit]

• “lōrd, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Proper noun[edit]

lord

1. (Christianity) Lord: Jesus Christ, God the Son
   • c. 1400, Lay Folks Mass, Bk. App. iii. 125:

     Þou art a sooþfaste leche, lord.

Interjection[edit]

lord

1. (originally an invocation) Lord: an interjection variously expressing astonishment, surprise, resignation
   • c. 1384, John Wyclif, Selected Works, III.358:

     Lord! in tyme of Jesus Crist … were men not bounden to shryve hem þus.

   • c. 1400, Lanfranc of Milan, Practica (trans. as The Science of Chirgurie), 298:

     O lord, whi is it so greet difference betwix a cirurgian & a phisician.

See also[edit]

• Lord

Polish[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from English lord, from Middle English lord and lorde, from lourde, from lowerd, louerd, loverd, laford, lhoaverd, from Old English hlāford, from hlāfweard.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /lɔrt/
• Rhymes: -ɔrt
• Syllabification: lord

Noun[edit]

lord m pers

1. Lord (aristocratic title for a man)
2. lord (aristocrat)
3. lord (titled nobleman)

Declension[edit]

[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• lord in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• lord in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Romanian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From English lord or French lord.

Noun[edit]

lord m (plural lorzi)

1. lord

Declension[edit]

Serbo-Croatian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from English lord.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /lôrd/

Noun[edit]

lȍrd m (Cyrillic spelling ло̏рд)

1. lord (British title)

Declension[edit]

References[edit]

• “lord” in Hrvatski jezični portal

Spanish[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from English lord.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /ˈloɾd/ [ˈloɾð̞]
  • Rhymes: -oɾd
  • Syllabification: lord
• IPA^(key): /ˈloɾ/ [ˈloɾ]
  • Rhymes: -oɾ

Noun[edit]

lord m (plural lores)

1. lord (British title)

[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• “lord”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

Turkish[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

• lort

Etymology[edit]

From Ottoman Turkish لورد‎ (lord), from English lord, from Middle English lord, lorde, from Old English hlāford, hlāfweard, a compound of hlāf (“bread”) + weard (“guardian”)

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): [ɫoɾd]
• Hyphenation: lord

Noun[edit]

lord (definite accusative lordu, plural lordlar)

1. lord

   Hypernym: asilzade

2. (slang) filthy rich
3. (rhetoric) big daddy

Declension[edit]

Inflection
Nominative	lord
Definite accusative	lordu
	Singular	Plural
Nominative	lord	lordlar
Definite accusative	lordu	lordları
Dative	lorda	lordlara
Locative	lordda	lordlarda
Ablative	lorddan	lordlardan
Genitive	lordun	lordların
Possessive forms Nominative Singular Plural 1st singular lordum lordlarım 2nd singular lordun lordların 3rd singular lordu lordları 1st plural lordumuz lordlarımız 2nd plural lordunuz lordlarınız 3rd plural lordları lordları Definite accusative Singular Plural 1st singular lordumu lordlarımı 2nd singular lordunu lordlarını 3rd singular lordunu lordlarını 1st plural lordumuzu lordlarımızı 2nd plural lordunuzu lordlarınızı 3rd plural lordlarını lordlarını Dative Singular Plural 1st singular lorduma lordlarıma 2nd singular lorduna lordlarına 3rd singular lorduna lordlarına 1st plural lordumuza lordlarımıza 2nd plural lordunuza lordlarınıza 3rd plural lordlarına lordlarına Locative Singular Plural 1st singular lordumda lordlarımda 2nd singular lordunda lordlarında 3rd singular lordunda lordlarında 1st plural lordumuzda lordlarımızda 2nd plural lordunuzda lordlarınızda 3rd plural lordlarında lordlarında Ablative Singular Plural 1st singular lordumdan lordlarımdan 2nd singular lordundan lordlarından 3rd singular lordundan lordlarından 1st plural lordumuzdan lordlarımızdan 2nd plural lordunuzdan lordlarınızdan 3rd plural lordlarından lordlarından Genitive Singular Plural 1st singular lordumun lordlarımın 2nd singular lordunun lordlarının 3rd singular lordunun lordlarının 1st plural lordumuzun lordlarımızın 2nd plural lordunuzun lordlarınızın 3rd plural lordlarının lordlarının

[edit]

• Lordlar Kamarası

«Lordship» redirects here. For other uses, see Lordship (disambiguation).

Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior (especially a feudal tenant who holds directly from the king, i.e., a baron). The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it ‘by courtesy’. The title may also be used in conjunction with others to denote a superior holder of an otherwise generic title, in such combinations as «Lord Mayor» or «Lord Chief Justice». The title is primarily taken by men, while women will usually take the title ‘lady’. However, this is not universal, as the Lord of Mann and female Lord Mayors are examples of women who are styled ‘lord’.

In religious contexts Lord can also refer to various gods or deities. The earliest uses of Lord in the English language in a religious context were by English Bible translators such as Bede. This reflected the Jewish practice of substituting the spoken Hebrew word Adonai (which means ‘My Lord’) for YHWH when read aloud.

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, the etymology of the word can be traced back to the Old English word ‘hlāford’ which originated from ‘hlāfweard’ meaning ‘bread keeper’ or ‘loaf-ward’, reflecting the Germanic tribal custom of a chieftain providing food for his followers.^[1] Lady, the female equivalent, originates from a similar structure, believed to have originally meant ‘loaf-kneader.’

Title

Peerage

Five ranks of peer exist in the United Kingdom, in descending order, these are: duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron. The title ‘Lord’ is used most often by barons who are rarely addressed with any other. The style of this address is ‘Lord (X)’, for example, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, is commonly known as ‘Lord Tennyson’. The ranks of marquess, earl and viscounts commonly use lord as well, with viscounts using the same style as used for baron. However, marquesses and earls have a slightly different form of address where they can be called either the ‘Marquess/Earl of (X)’ or ‘Lord (X)’. Dukes also use the style, ‘Duke of (X)’, but it is not acceptable to refer to them as ‘Lord (X)’. Dukes are formally addressed as ‘Your Grace’, rather than ‘My Lord’. In the Peerage of Scotland, the members of the lowest level of the peerage have the title ‘Lord of Parliament’ rather than baron.

For senior members of the peerage, the title lord also applies by courtesy to some or all of their children; for example the younger sons of dukes and marquesses can use the style ‘Lord (first name) (surname)’. The titles are courtesy titles in that the holder does not hold a peerage, and is, according to British law, a commoner.

House of Lords

In the UK, the House of Lords (known commonly as ‘the Lords’) forms the upper house of Parliament. Here all peers are treated as lords but there are three different classifications:

• Most lords who hold peerages created before the passage of the Life Peerages Act 1958 (and a handful who hold peerages created after then) are hereditary peers, who until 1999 constituted the most numerous category of lords sitting in the House. There are in excess of 700 lords whose titles may be inherited, however since the House of Lords Act 1999, they are no longer guaranteed a seat in the Lords and instead must take part in an election for a total of ninety-two seats. All male peers of England, Great Britain and the United Kingdom were before 1999 entitled to sit in the House of Lords by virtue of their title. Peeresses were granted the right to sit in 1963. Peers of Scotland and Ireland, however, historically had limitations on their right to sit at Westminster. Between 1707 and 1963, Scottish peers participated in elections to determine which of them would take the sixteen seats allocated to them. Elections were abolished in 1963, and from that time until 1999 all Scottish peers and peeresses were entitled to sit. Irish peers participated in similar elections between 1801 and 1922, when the Irish Free State was established. Elections of Irish peers ceased in 1922, however already-elected Irish representative peers remained entitled to sit until their death. The last Irish representative peer to die was Francis Needham, 4th Earl of Kilmorey, who died in 1961. Many Irish peers also hold peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, which entitled them to sit in the House (without the necessity of being elected a representative peer) until 1999.
• The importance of hereditary lords has declined steadily following the increase in the appointment of life peers. These peers are entitled to sit in the House of Lords for the duration of their life, but cannot transfer their titles to their heirs. They are rarely above the rank of baron. The first life peers were appointed to assist the House of Lords in exercising its judicial functions under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876. Widespread appointment of life peers was enabled by the passage of the Life Peerages Act 1958. Since that Act was passed, some 1,086 life peers have been created. The only hereditary privilege associated with life peerages is that children of life peers are entitled to style themselves ‘The Honourable (firstname) (surname)’.
• These first two groups are collectively termed Lords Temporal as opposed to the third type of lord sitting in the House known as Lords Spiritual (or spiritual peers). This group consists of twenty-six Church of England bishops who are appointed in order of superiority. Unlike Lords Temporal, who can be appointed from any of the four nations of the UK, only bishops with English Sees are eligible to sit in the Chamber. Bishops of the Church of Scotland traditionally sat in the Parliament of Scotland but were excluded in 1638 following the Scottish Reformation. There are no longer bishops in the Church of Scotland in the traditional sense of the word, and that Church has never sent members to sit in the Westminster House of Lords. The Church of Ireland ceased to send bishops to sit after disestablishment in 1871. The Church in Wales ceased to be a part of the Church of England in 1920 and was simultaneously disestablished in Wales. Accordingly, bishops of the Church in Wales were no longer eligible to be appointed to the House as bishops of the Church of England.

Judiciary

Until the creation of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, the judges of the House of Lords held life peerages, and were addressed accordingly. They were known collectively as the Law Lords. Those Law Lords who became the first justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom have now lost their right to sit and vote in the House of Lords, despite retaining their life peerages. The title ‘Lord’ is also used to refer to some judges who are not peers in some Commonwealth legal systems. Some such judges, for instance judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, are called ‘Lords Justices’, or ‘Ladies Justices’, as the case may be. Other such judges, for instance judges of Canadian provincial supreme courts, are known only as ‘Justices’ but are addressed in court as ‘My Lord’ or ‘My Lady’ or ‘Your Lordship’ or ‘Your Ladyship’.

Examples of judges who use the title include:

• Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, who are addressed as if they were life peers by Royal Warrant,^[2] but do not hold peerages (except for those Law Lords who already held peerages when they became the first justices of the Court). Wives of male justices are addressed as if they were wives of peers. These forms of address are applicable both in court and in all other social contexts.
• Judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, known as ‘Lords Justices of Appeal’.
• Judges of the Scottish Court of Session, known as ‘Lords of Council and Session’.
• Judges of the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts of India, who are addressed as ‘My Lord’ in court. The Bar Council of India however calls upon lawyers to give up this practice of addressing judges as ‘lords’.

Lord of the Manor

The title «Lord of the Manor» arose in the English medieval system of manorialism following the Norman Conquest. The title «Lord of the Manor» is a titular feudal dignity which is still recognised today. Their holders are entitled to call themselves «[Personal name], Lord/Lady of the Manor of [Place name]». Whilst Lordships of The Manor are not titles of nobility they are recognised titles. The UK Identity and Passport Service will include them on a British passport as an observation e.g. ‘The Holder is the Lord of the Manor of X’ provided the holder can provide documentary evidence of ownership.^[3]

Laird

The Scottish title Laird is a shortened form of ‘laverd’ which is an old Scottish word deriving from an Anglo-Saxon term meaning ‘Lord’ and is also derived from the middle English word ‘Lard’ also meaning ‘Lord’. ‘Laird’ is a hereditary title for the owner of a landed estate in the United Kingdom and is a title of Gentry. The title of Laird may carry certain local or feudal rights, though unlike a Lordship, a Lairdship has not always carried voting rights, either in the historic Parliament of Scotland or, after unification with the Kingdom of England, in the British House of Lords.

Other

Various other high offices of state may carry the cachet of honorary lords, such as Lord Chancellor, Lord Privy Seal, Lord President of the Council and Lord Mayor. Holders of these offices are not necessarily peers, although the holders of some of the titles were in the past always peers.

Feudalism

Main articles: Feudalism and English Feudal Baronies

In feudalism, a lord (also known as a liege) has aristocratic rank, has control over a portion of land and the produce and labour of the serfs living thereon. Knights or lesser lords would swear the oath of fealty to the lord, and would then become a vassal (also known as a liegeman).

Bishops in the Middle Ages held the feudal rank of lord over their spiritual inferiors, hence today even bishops who do not sit as Lords Spiritual may be addressed as «Lord Bishop». As a reflection of its feudal (and thus territorial) nature, however, the title is generally reserved for diocesan bishops, not assistant or coadjutor bishops.

As part of the heritage of feudalism, lord can generally refer to superiors of many kinds, for example landlord. In many cultures in Europe the equivalent term serves as a general title of address equivalent to the English ‘Mister’ French Monsieur, Spanish Señor, Portuguese Senhor, Italian Signore, Dutch Meneer/Mijnheer/De Heer (as in: to de heer Joren Jansen), German Herr, Hungarian Úr, Greek Kyrie or to the English formal «you» (Polish Pan). See also gentleman.

Religion

People have often used the term ‘Lord’ in religious contexts, where «The Lord» refers to God in Judaism or Islam, or to Lord Buddha in Buddhism, or to God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit in Christianity. In the Anglican Church there are also Lord Bishops. In many Christian Bibles (such as the King James Version), the Hebrew name YHWH (the Tetragrammaton) is rendered «LORD» (all caps) or «Lord» (small caps). This usage follows the Jewish practice of substituting the spoken Hebrew word «Adonai» for YHWH when read aloud.^[4] Following practice in Hebrew, the Septuagint mainly used the Greek word Kyrios (Greek: Κύριος, meaning ‘lord’) to translate YHWH. As this was the Old Testament of the Early Church, the Christian practice of translating the divine name as ‘Lord’ derives directly from it.

The English term Lord is often used to translate the Arabic term Rabb, used with respect to Allah.

In Hindu theology, The Lord or Svayam Bhagavan may refer to the concept of the Absolute representation of the monotheistic God. Another name used more commonly used in Hindu theology for the Lord is Ishvara (Ishvara is the Sanskrit word meaning «The Lord»), the personal god consisting of the holy trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.

Other concepts of The Lord:

• Baal, or Hadad, among the Caananites and most pre-monotheistic religion Semites was «The Lord» with whom only priests were allowed to speak. References to Baal in the Hebrew Bible, such as the prophet Elijah’s confrontation with Baal’s priests, usually correspond to local gods rather than to Hadad.
• Bel meaning ‘Lord’ is a common title of the Babylonian deity Marduk.
• En meaning ‘Lord’ as in Sumerian deities Enki and Enlil.
• In Buddhism it refers to the Buddha and in Jainism to the Mahavira.
• In Nahuatl, the word ‘Ahau’ is translated as ‘Lord’ in reference to Aztec deities.
• The name of the god Adonis is regarded by many scholars as a cognate of the Hebrew word for «lord», Adonai.
• In Mormonism, it is believed that Jesus Christ was the YHVH (Jehovah) of the Old Testament in his pre-mortal existence, and since that name is translated «The Lord» in the King James Bible, in Mormonism «The Lord» refers to Jesus Christ, while Elohim, the being that created the cosmos, is referred to as «God». (See Mormon cosmology for references)
• In the Wiccan religion, the male god Pan or Cernunnos is also sometimes referred to as ‘The Lord’ and the female goddess Diana as ‘The Lady’. Some Wiccans such as Gerald Gardner taught that there is another pantheistic Deity above these two which he called by the Aristotlean name the Prime Mover; Patricia Crowther uses the term «Dryghten», an Old English name for The Lord to refer to this Deity; while Starhawk uses the name Star Goddess to describe the being that created the cosmos. (See Wiccan views of divinity for references)

See also

Forms of address in the United Kingdom Lord Bishop Lords Spiritual Lord Chamberlain Lord Chancellor Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales Lord Commissioner of Justiciary Lord of Council and Session Lord High Admiral Lord High Constable Lord High Treasurer Lord of the Treasury Lord Justice Clerk Law Lord Lord President of the Council Lord President of the Court of Session Lord Privy Seal Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty (the Sea Lords)

Lord Rector Lord Mayor Peerage Duke Marquess Earl Viscount Baron English Feudal Baronies Lord of Parliament Laird Lord of the Manor Trịnh Lords Nguyễn Lords Milord My Sweet Lord

References

Читая историческую книгу или просматривая фильм, можно столкнуться со словом «лорд». Это английский термин, который появился несколько столетий назад. В настоящее время это официальный титул в Великобритании. О значении слова «лорд», его особенностях и разновидностях читайте в статье.

В словаре

Слово «лорд» трактуется как «хозяин», «господин», «владыка». Оно происходит от древнеанглийского – hlaford (hlafweard) путем сложения слов hlaf (хлеб) и weard (сторож). В буквальном переводе лорд – это «хранитель хлеба». Под этим следует понимать «хранитель земель, на которых произрастает хлеб». Таким образом, происхождение слова «лорд» обуславливает его значение как хранителя, хозяина земель.

Изначально титул лорда носили все люди, принадлежащие к феодальному сословию и являющиеся землевладельцами. В данном значении этот титул противопоставлялся термину «крестьянство», который обозначал всех тех, кто проживал на земле лорда. Они имели обязанности и различные повинности, а также должны были быть верны своему феодалу.

Разновидности

Позднее появляются разновидности титула, как, например, «лорд манора». Это феодал, владелец земель в Средневековой Англии, полученных непосредственно от монарха. Этот лорд отличался от Шотландских лэрдов и английских рыцарей Джентри, которые хоть и владели землями, однако по факту эти территории принадлежали другим феодалам.

В XIII веке, с возникновением в Англии, а также в Шотландии парламентов, феодалы приобрели возможность непосредственно участвовать в них. Причем в английском была создана отдельная палата лордов (верхняя), также называвшаяся палатой пэров. Пэры находились в ней по праву рождения. Этим они отличались от других лордов, которые были обязаны выбирать своих представителей в отдельную палату общин (по графствам).

Ранги титула

После появления разновидностей титула, лорд стал делиться на пять рангов английского пэрства:

• герцог;
• маркиз;
• граф;
• виконт;
• барон.

Изначально получить титул пэра могли только дворяне, которые были посвящены в рыцари. Однако в период с XVIII по XIX века пэрство стали жаловать представителям других слоев английского общества, в первую очередь – буржуа.

Также этот титул имели так называемые духовные лорды. Это 26 епископов Англиканской Церкви. Они также заседали в палате лордов. В XX веке распространилась практика вручения титула пэра на всю жизнь, но без права его наследования. Такой титул обычно давали в ранге барона профессиональным политикам для того, чтобы их можно было вызывать на заседания в палату лордов.

Низшие ранги

Следует отметить, что титул лорд зачастую используется для того, чтобы обозначить четыре низших ранга пэрства. Так, например, это относилось к баронам. По факту они всегда именовались лордами. А затем прибавлялся титул «Стаффордширский», но практически никогда не говорили о бароне «Стаффордширском».

В шотландской системе ранжирования самым низким считается лорд парламента. Присвоение такого титула, давало возможность феодалам, участвовать в парламенте Шотландии.

Для виконтов, графов и маркизов именование лордом также являлось общепринятым. Сначала называли ранг, затем титул. Стоит отметить, что для именования пэра, наряду с титулом лорд, не нужно употреблять его фамилию, например, Йоркский.

При личном обращении к пэру-мужчине используется выражение My Lord, что в переводе с английского обозначает «мой господин». Обращаясь к герцогам говорят Your Grace, что значит «ваша милость».

Заключение

Во время открытия парламентской сессии используется довольно архаичное выражение Your Lordship, что переводится как «ваша светлость». В царской России и в русском языке принято обращение «милорд», которое пришло из французского языка. Оно широко использовалось во Франции в XIX веке при обращении к абсолютно любому англичанину, вне зависимости от того, являлся он пэром, герцогом или виконтом.

В настоящее время титулы лордов имеют представители в верховных судах Великобритании, Шотландии и Канады. Однако они не являются пэрами, а данный им титул достается исключительно из-за должности.

Рассматриваемый титул в сегодняшней Англии имеют некоторые высшие королевские сановники, которые назначаются специальным комитетом. Так, например, для того чтобы выполнять обязанности лорда — Верховного адмирала необходимо его назначение специальным органом. Для этого существует особый Комитет Адмиралтейства. Его возглавляет лицо, именуемое Первым лордом.

Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting like a master, a chief, or a ruler.^[1][2] The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are entitled to courtesy titles. The collective «Lords» can refer to a group or body of peers.

Etymology

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, the etymology of the word can be traced back to the Old English word hlāford which originated from hlāfweard meaning «loaf-ward» or «bread-keeper», reflecting the Germanic tribal custom of a chieftain providing food for his followers.^[3] The appellation «lord» is primarily applied to men, while for women the appellation «lady» is used. This is no longer universal: the Lord of Mann, a title held by the Queen of the United Kingdom, and female Lords Mayor are examples of women who are styled as «Lord».

Historical usage

Feudalism

Main articles: Feudalism and English Feudal Baronies

Under the feudal system, «lord» had a wide, loose and varied meaning. An overlord was a person from whom a landholding or a manor was held by a mesne lord or vassal under various forms of feudal land tenure. The modern term «landlord» is a vestigial survival of this function. A liege lord was a person to whom a vassal owed sworn allegiance. Neither of these terms were titular dignities, but rather factual appellations, which described the relationship between two or more persons within the highly stratified feudal social system. For example, a man might be Lord of the Manor to his own tenants but also a vassal of his own overlord, who in turn was a vassal of the King. Where a knight was a lord of the manor, he was referred to in contemporary documents as «John (Surname), knight, lord of (manor name)». A feudal baron was a true titular dignity, with the right to attend Parliament, but a feudal baron, Lord of the Manor of many manors, was a vassal of the King.

Lord of the manor

See also: Lord of the manor

The substantive title of «Lord of the Manor» came into use in the English medieval system of feudalism after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The title «Lord of the Manor» was a titular feudal dignity which derived its force from the existence and operation of a manorial court or court baron at which he or his steward presided, thus he was the lord of the manorial court which determined the rules and laws which were to govern all the inhabitants and property covered by the jurisdiction of the court. To the tenants of a certain class of manor known in Saxon times as Infangenthef^[4] their lord was a man who had the power of exercising capital punishment over them. The term invariably used in contemporary mediaeval documents is simply «lord of X», X being the name of the manor. The term «Lord of the Manor» is a recent usage of historians to distinguish such lords from feudal barons and other powerful persons referred to in ancient documents variously as «Sire» (mediaeval French), «Dominus» (Latin), «Lord» etc. The title of «Lord of the Manor» is recognised by the British Government for any such title registered at Her Majesty’s Land Registry before 13 October 2003 (the commencement date of the Land Registration Act 2002) but after that date titles can no longer be registered, and any such titles voluntarily de-registered by the holder cannot later be re-registered. However any transfer of ownership of registered manors will continue to be recorded in the register, on the appropriate notification. Thus in effect the register is closed for new registrations.^[5] Such titles are legally classified as «incorporeal hereditaments» as they have no physical existence,^[6] and usually have no intrinsic value. However a lucrative market arose in the 20th century for such titles, often for purposes of vanity, which was assisted by the existence of an official register, giving the purchaser the impression of a physical existence. Whether a title of «Lord of the Manor» is registered or unregistered has no effect on its legal validity or existence, which is a matter of law to be determined by the courts. Modern legal cases have been won by persons claiming rights as lords of the manor over village greens. The heads of many ancient English land-owning families have continued to be lords of the manor of lands they have inherited.

The UK Identity and Passport Service will include such titles on a British passport as an «observation» (e.g., ‘The Holder is the Lord of the Manor of X’), provided the holder can provide documentary evidence of ownership.^[7] The United States ^[8] forbids the use of all titles on passports. Australia forbids the use of titles on passports if those titles have not been awarded by the Crown (in reference to the Australian Monarchy) or the Commonwealth (in reference to the Australian Government).^[9]

Laird

See also: Laird

The Scottish title Laird is a shortened form of ‘laverd’ which is an old Scottish word deriving from an Anglo-Saxon term meaning ‘Lord’ and is also derived from the middle English word ‘Lard’ also meaning ‘Lord’. The word is generally used to refer to any owner of a landed estate and has no meaning in heraldic terms and its use is not controlled by the Lord Lyon.

Modern usage

Peerage

Main article: Peerage of the United Kingdom

Lord is used as a generic term to denote members of the peerage. Five ranks of peer exist in the United Kingdom: in descending order these are duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron. The appellation «Lord» is used most often by barons, who are rarely addressed by their formal and legal title of «Baron». The most formal style is «The Lord (X)»: for example, Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, can be referred to as «The Lord Tennyson», although the most common appellation is «Lord Tennyson». Marquesses, earls and viscounts are commonly also addressed as Lord. Dukes use the style «The Duke of (X)», and are not correctly referred to as «Lord (X)». Dukes are formally addressed as «Your Grace», rather than «My Lord». In the Peerage of Scotland, the members of the lowest level of the peerage have the substantive title «Lord of Parliament» rather than Baron.

«Lord» is also used as a courtesy title for some or all of the children of senior members of the peerage: for example the younger sons of dukes and marquesses are entitled to use the style «Lord (first name) (surname)».^[10] As these titles are merely courtesy titles, the holder is not by virtue of the title a member of the peerage and is not entitled to use the definite article «The» as part of the title. Sons of British Princes would also use a similar style if the holder doesn’t have a peerage.

House of Lords

See also: House of Lords

The upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is the House of Lords, which is an abbreviation of the full title, «The Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament Assembled». The Lords Temporal are the people who are entitled to receive writs of summons to attend the House of Lords in right of a peerage. The Lords Spiritual are the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the Bishops of London, Winchester and Durham, and the twenty-one longest-serving bishops of the Church of England from among the other bishops, who are all entitled to receive writs of summons in right of their bishoprics or archbishoprics.

The Lords Temporal greatly outnumber the Lords Spiritual, there being nearly 800 of the former and only 26 of the latter. As of December 2016, 92 Lords Temporal sit in the House in right of hereditary peerages and 19 sit in right of judicial life peerages under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876. The rest are life peers under the Life Peerages Act 1958.

Judiciary

See also: Judiciary of the United Kingdom

Until the creation of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2009), certain judges sat in the House of Lords by virtue of holding life peerages. They were known collectively as the Law Lords. Those Law Lords who had held the office of Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom lost the right to sit and vote in the House of Lords, despite retaining their life peerages, upon creation of the Supreme Court. The appellation «Lord» is also used to refer to some judges in certain Commonwealth legal systems, who are not peers. Some such judges, for instance judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, are called «Lord Justice». Other Commonwealth judges, for example judges of Canadian provincial supreme courts, are known only as Justices but are addressed with deference in court as ‘My Lord’, ‘My Lady’, ‘Your Lordship’ or ‘Your Ladyship’.

Examples of judges who use the appellation «lord» include:

• Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom not holding peerages, who are addressed as if they were life peers by Royal Warrant.^[11] Wives of male justices who are not peers are addressed as if they were wives of peers. These forms of address are applicable both in court and in social contexts.
• Judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, known as ‘Lords Justices of Appeal’.
• Judges of the Scottish Court of Session, known as ‘Lords of Council and Session’.
• Justices of the Canadian provincial Supreme Courts, addressed in Court as «My Lord» or «My Lady» and referred to in legal literature as «Lordships» or «Ladyships».
• Judges of the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts of India, who are addressed as «My Lord» and «Your Lordship» in court. The Bar Council of India calls upon lawyers to give up this practice of addressing judges as ‘lords’.

Ecclesiastical

In Great Britain and Ireland, and in most countries that are members or former members of the Commonwealth, bishops may be addressed as «My Lord» or «My Lord Bishop» or «Your Lordship», particularly on formal occasions. This usage is not restricted to those bishops who sit in the House of Lords. Indeed, by custom, it is not restricted to bishops of the Church of England but applies to bishops of the Church in Wales, the Scottish Episcopal Church and the Roman Catholic Church, and may be applied (though less commonly) to bishops of other Christian jurisdictions. It has become more common to use simply the one word «Bishop».

In the United States, bishops are addressed as «Excellency».

Other

Various other high offices of state in the United Kingdom, Commonwealth and Republic of Ireland are prefixed with the deferential appellation of «lord» such as Lord Chancellor, Lord Privy Seal, Lord President of the Council and Lord Mayor. Holders of these offices are not ex officio peers, although the holders of some of the offices were in the past always peers.

Non-English equivalents

In most cultures in Europe an equivalent appellation denoting deference exists. The French term Mon Seigneur («My Lord»), shortened to the modern French Monsieur derives directly from the Latin seniorem, meaning «elder, senior».^[12] From this Latin source derived directly also the Italian Signore, the Spanish Señor, the Portuguese Senhor.

Non-Romance languages have their own equivalents. Of the Germanic family there is the Dutch Meneer/Mijnheer/De Heer (as in: aan de heer Joren Jansen), German Herr, and Danish Herre. All three of these stem from a Germanic title of respect (in this case, from the Proto-Germanic root *haira-, «hoary, venerable, grey», likely a loan translation of Latin seniorem).^[13]
In other European languages there is Welsh Arglwydd, Hungarian Úr, Greek Kyrie, Polish Pan, Czech pán, Breton Aotrou, Albanian Zoti.

In several Indian languages there are: Hindi Swami, Prabhu, Thakur, Samprabhu(Overlord) also words like Saheb or Laat Saheb from Lord Saheb were once used but have changed in meaning now, Telugu Prabhuvu, Tamil Koman, Kannada Dore, Bengali Probhu, Gujarati Swami, Punjabi Su’āmī, Nepali Prabhu. Words like Swami and Prabhu are Sanskrit-origin words, common in many Indian languages.

Philippine languages have different words for «lord», some of which are cognates. Tagalog has Panginoón for «lord» in both the noble and the religious senses. Its root, ginoo, is also found in Visayan languages like Cebuano as the term for «lord». Ginoo is also the Tagalog root for Ginoóng, the modern equivalent of the English term «Mister» (akin to how Romance language terms like señor may be glossed as either «lord», «mister», or «sir»). Ilocano meanwhile employs Apo for «Lord» in religious contexts; it is a particle that generally accords respect to an addressee of higher status than the speaker.

In the Yoruba language of West Africa, the words Olu and Oluwa are used in much the same way as the English term. Olodumare, the Yoruba conception of God Almighty, is often referred to using either of these two words. In the Yoruba chieftaincy system, meanwhile, the Oluwo of Iwo‘s royal title translates to «Lord of Iwo». In Lagos, the Oluwa of Lagos is one of that kingdom’s most powerful chiefs.

Religion

«Lord» is used as a title of deference for various gods or deities. The earliest recorded use of «Lord» in the English language in a religious context was by English Bible translators such as Bede. However, Bede wrote in Latin, and was described by Michael Lapidge as «without question the most accomplished Latinist produced in these islands in the Anglo-Saxon period». He used an Anglo-Saxon phrase that indicated a noble, prince, ruler or lord to refer to God; however, he applied this as a gloss to the Latin text that he was producing, and not as a clear translation of the term itself. «Lord», as a gloss to Old English Old English: dryhten, meant royal, ruler, prince, noble, and did not indicate a deity. After the Norman invasion and the influx of French Catholics, this understanding began to be applied to religious texts as well, but that was during the later Middle Ages and not the early medieval period of Bede’s time. It was widely used in the King James Bible translated in the 17th century. See also Jesus is Lord.

• In English language Old Testament translations such as the King James Version, the Hebrew name YHWH (the Tetragrammaton) is usually rendered «the Template:LORD«. This usage follows the Jewish practice of substituting the spoken Hebrew word «Adonai» («My Lords») for appearances of YHWH.^[14]
• Christianity: Jesus is called «Lord» in the New Testament.
• Semitic religions: Other deities given corresponding appellations to «Lord» include:
  • Baʿal («Lord») was used by the Canaanites both as a generic term of address to various local deities and as the spoken name for the storm god Baʿal Haddu once the form «Hadad» became too sacred for any but his high priest to utter.
  • Similarly, Tammuz came to be addressed as «Adoni» («My Lord»).
  • En meaning «Lord» as in Sumerian deities Enki and Enlil.
• Buddhism: Gautama Buddha is often called Lord Buddha.
• Jainism: «Lord» refers to the Mahavira.
• Nahuatl: the word «Ahau» is translated as «Lord» in reference to Aztec deities.
• Greece: Adonis was a form of the Semitic Adoni.
• Old Norse: The names Freyr and Freya have the meaning Lord and Lady.
• Wicca: the Wiccan God is often referred to as «The Lord» and the Wiccan Goddess as «The Lady», or in the combination «Lord and Lady» (in this form, the definite article «the» is usually omitted), usually in reference to a mythological pairing such as Cernunos and Cerridwen.
• Mormonism: it is believed that Jesus was the YHVH (Jehovah) of the Old Testament in his pre-mortal existence, and since that name is translated as «the Lord» in the King James Bible, in Mormonism «the Lord» refers to Jesus. Elohim, a separate individual who is the father of Jesus, is generally referred to by Mormons as «God» or «Heavenly Father». (See Mormon cosmology for references.)

Hinduism

In Hindu theology, the Svayam Bhagavan may refer to the concept of the Absolute representation of the monotheistic God. Another name more commonly used in Hindu theology is Ishvara, meaning «The Lord», the personal god consisting of the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.

Islam

Main article: Rabb

• Islam: The English term «Lord» is often used to translate the Arabic term rabb (Template:Lang-ar).

See also

• Heerlijkheid
• Forms of address in the United Kingdom
• Lord Bishop
• Lord Chamberlain
• Lord Commissioner of Justiciary
• Lord of Council and Session
• Lord High Admiral
• Lord High Constable
• Lord High Treasurer
• Lord of the Treasury
• Lord Justice Clerk
• Lord President of the Court of Session
• Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty (the Sea Lords)
• Lord Rector
• Milord
• My Sweet Lord
• Nguyễn Lords
• Trịnh Lords
• Cambodian lord (Oknha)
• Lord of the Isles

References

External links

• The dictionary definition of lord at Wiktionary

* The word _amakhû_ is applied to an individual who has freely entered the service of king or baron, and taken him for his lord: _amakhû khir nibuf_ means _vassal of his lord_. ❋ M. L. McClure (1881)

DUKE _ (My lord_), a duke’s servant, who assumes the airs and title of his master, and is addressed as «Your grace,» or «My lord duke.» ❋ Ebenezer Cobham Brewer (1853)

I. i.241 (284,9) That I had no angry wit to be a lord] [W: so hungry a wit] The meaning may be, I should hate myself for _patiently enduring to be a lord_. ❋ Samuel Johnson (1746)

The deliberate use of the term lord by Lord Ghrant would have been so obvious to any lord, lower or upper, and Kharl hadn’t even noticed what it had meant. ❋ Modesitt, L. E. (2005)

I want you and the Church to always pray for me because the lord is my shephard. ❋ Unknown (2006)

It worked because the very essence of it was that it changed from the leader to the lord, from the duke to the lord, and the lord is the loaf-ward who must feed his people. ❋ Unknown (1937)

And the characters, though dependent to a certain extent on stereotypes — my dark lord is referred to as Dark Lord Mogrash! — are a lot more well-rounded, with their actual characteristics playing against type. ❋ Unknown (2009)

His passion for his lord is intense, but it can easily be rivaled, if not surpassed, by his appreciation for the world of tea. ❋ Unknown (2009)

I have been engrossed in lord of the rings online this week, ecstatic about the new Warden class. ❋ Nathreee (2009)

In this issue, a new lord is crowned and Thulsa is sent on a quest. ❋ Unknown (2009)

I know alot of you are not ready to see a black man in office, but when the lord is for you the racist wicked world can be against you and you will still prosper. ❋ Unknown (2008)

La regina, mio signore, è morta (The Queen, my lord is dead). ❋ Unknown (2007)

There were only a dozen like him and only one of the others would this one call lord. ❋ Richard A. Knaak (2009)

Good lord, is there any show that blonde from «Invasion» isn’t on these days? ❋ Unknown (2007)

Commander of the Faithful, indeed I have heard that their lord is wrapped up in them and cannot bear to be parted from them. ❋ Unknown (2006)

In other European languages, the equivalent to «lord» is used as the form of address for men; [Dominus], [Signore], [Señor], Monsieur, Herr, etc. ❋ Lorelili (2007)

wow…[that kid] is really lord tonight…[wish] i could [be like that]! ❋ C (2004)

[Lord Calvert] controls this [feif] for his majesty the king.
The name of the noble hero in this novel is Lord [Ilpalazzo]. ❋ David Perek (2004)

[Look at that] lord, [mincing] [down the road] ❋ Fixxxer (2004)

[wait], he uses [a cigarette] [holder]?! what a lord! ❋ Ashley St. Claire (2003)

The lord givith and the lord [taketh]; we [loveth] the lord.
at a party: Dude, I’m feeling down tonight. Why don’t we [speed dial] the lord? ❋ Annie (2004)

«[Look at this] [lord over] here.» ❋ The G Master (2006)

i r [r0x0rz] [j00r] knix0rzb0x0rz, [f00]. ❋ God Almighty. (2003)

❋ Anon (2003)

I am [lorde] [ya ya] [ya] ❋ ThAtS IGnOrAnT (2020)

In this “Word Nerd: Language and the Bible” video (full transcription below), Mark Ward (author of Authorized: The Use and Misuse of the King James Bible) explores the origin of the word “Lord” in the English language—a word that, of course, shows up countless times in our English Bibles.

Etymology is the quaint science.

Word histories are for precocious nine-year-old homeschoolers who enjoy presenting irrelevant factoids to bemused adults.

But word histories are history, and they can come with all the drama that human life does. They can even point us to the love and plan of God.

Think, for example, of the clash of Christianity and Anglo-Saxon culture that had to happen to give us the simple word “Lord.” In English-speaking Christianity, “Lord” is the very name of God (“I am the Lord, that is my name,” Isa 42:8). Lord today is wholly unremarkable, utterly traditional. But when Christianity came to the Germanic tribes living on the island of Britain 1,400 years ago, they had no tradition of Christian words. Somebody had to look at the words available and pick some that kind of fit.

Anglo-Saxon Christians of the period used several words to name the biblical God, including one that originally meant “loaf warden.” The hlaf wearden—that’s how the title was spelled in Old English—was the head of the household, the guardian of the staple food that kept the family alive: bread. If that sounds quaint, consider today’s “breadwinner,” which carries a similar meaning. And if it sounds far away, consider my own surname, “Ward,” which comes right from wearden. Over time, “loaf warden” shortened to “lord” (hlafard) and its association with bread died out. It began instead to name the male leader of the family. It was at this time, in the late seventh century, that an Anglo-Saxon hymn-writer, Caedmon, chose to call God Heafunæs Hlafard, the “Heavenly Lord.” He also chose words that meant “guardian” (uard) and “military chief” (dryctin) and applied them to God too. He used the very secular to name the very sacred.

Christianity is multilingual

If you got through that nerdy paragraph, here’s the first payoff: Christianity is necessarily multilingual, and that fact is a testimony to God’s great love for all his creation. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess—in whatever tongue that tongue knows—that Jesus Christ is Lord (Phil 2). Every tribe and tongue will praise the Lamb (Rev 5:9). So anytime Christianity comes to disciple another nation, to bless another family of the earth, that nation’s speech has to be put to Christian use. And it can be. It is part of the genius of Christianity that it isn’t stuck inside some holy language. Not Hebrew, not Greek, not Arabic, not King James English. God can habla Español, he can parlez Français, and he can (something-something) Urdu.

Christian terminology is traditional

You’ll get a second payoff if you think hard with me. It’s really hard, nearly impossible, to put ourselves in the shoes of people whose language had never before been used to say Christian stuff. For us, all Christian terminology is traditional. But there is a way to put yourself in the shoes of horrified, educated Latin speakers who watched as uncouth Anglo-Saxons started trying to talk about God in their barbarous speech. Just think of a dialect of English you secretly (or not so secretly) look down your nose at, a dialect and accompanying accent you’d never expect to come out of the mouth of your neurosurgeon or of a national news anchor, or that you’d never let your child get away with using.

Now imagine if people tried to make a Bible translation into that dialect. Does that give you a weird feeling, like something doesn’t fit? Rest assured: God can speak that English.

We know now what the overall language of English is capable of—countless books, articles, poems, hymns, Bible translations—but Caedmon didn’t know that. Horrified speakers of classical Latin didn’t either.

In the clash between Christianity and English, Christianity won—and so did English.

***

“Word Nerd: Language and the Bible” is the back-page column in Bible Study Magazine. Watch more Word Nerd videos, or get a free six-month subscription to Bible Study Magazine, the one magazine dedicated to helping you study the Bible with the best tools.

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• A Visual Guide to Choosing the Best Bible Translation
• How to Use Bible Commentaries as Tools for Discovery
• 7 of the Best Exegetical Bible Commentaries

Related resources

• Authorized: The Use and Misuse of the King James Bible by Mark Ward
• Biblical Worldview: Creation, Fall, Redemption by Mark Ward
• Lexham Survey of Theology