Under the system of feudalism, a fiefdom, fief, feud, feoff, or fee, often consisted of inheritable lands or revenue-producing property granted by a liege lord in return for a form of allegiance, originally to give him the means to fulfill his military duties when called upon. However anything of value could be held in fief, such as an office, a right of exploitation (e.g., hunting, fishing) or any other type of revenue, rather than the land it comes from.

Equivalents elsewhere

While many other cultures have known, or sometimes still know, a form of feudalism, the historical development of property rights is highly complex and precise traditions vary, so the terms can at best be considered equivalent, never synonymous.

• In Japan, a fief is called "han."
• In Persia, under the Qajar dynasty, a tuyuldar held a large fief.
• In Somalia, under the Ugaas and Garaad system, continue as elder sons inherit top tribal positions to rule over large populations.
• In feudal India, forms of fief included the jagir (land) and the mansab, but often the same was true for formally administrative/domanial (especially tax-collecting) 'estates' such as taluqa or thikana.
• In the Ottoman Empire, Timariots and Sipahi were kinds of fiefed military.
• In Germany, a fief is called "Lehen".

Derogatory Usage

Fiefdomism can refer to behavior of bureaucrats or small time politicians when information or programs are isolated and jealously guarded from other bureaucrats or small time politicians in order to preserve their power at the expense of making government worse.

See also

• Nobility
• Serfdom
• Appanage (consisting in part of the liege's domain, granted to a junior relative)
• Knight-service

Sources and references

• RoyalArk- see each present country