Demeure, maison ancienne (sous-entendu : de noblesse campagnarde ou château un peu rustique).
ETYM Old Eng. maner, Old Fren. maneir habitation, village, French manoir manor, prop. the Old Fren. inf. maneir to stay, remain, dwell, Latin manere. Related to Mansion, Remain.
Basic economic unit in feudalism in Europe, established in England under the Norman conquest. It consisted of the lord's house and cultivated land, land rented by free tenants, land held by villagers, common land, woodland, and waste land.
Here and there traces of the system survive in England—the common land may have become an area for public recreation— but the documents sometimes sold at auction and entitling the owner to be called “lord of the manor” seldom have any rights attached to them.
(Homonym: manner).
1. The house of the lord of the manor; SYN. manor house.
2. The landed estate of a lord (including the house on it).