What does seneschal mean?

Definitions for seneschal
ˈsɛn ə ʃəlseneschal

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word seneschal.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. major-domo, seneschalnoun

    the chief steward or butler of a great household

Wiktionary

  1. seneschalnoun

    A steward in charge of a medieval nobleman's estate.

  2. Etymology: From seneschal (recorded in English since 1393), from seneschal, from (Frankish) siniscalcus, from sini- + skalk; latter term as in marshal. Compare French sénéchal.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Seneschalnoun

    Etymology: seneschal, French, of uncertain original.

    John earl of Huntingdon, under his seal of arms, made sir John Arundel, of Trerice, seneschal of his houshold, as well in peace as in war. Richard Carew, Survey of Cornwal.

    Marshal’d feast,
    Serv’d up in hall with sewers and seneschals;
    The skill of artifice, or office, mean! John Milton, Par. Lost.

    The seneschal rebuk’d, in haste withdrew;
    With equal haste a menial train pursue. Alexander Pope, Odyssey.

Wikipedia

  1. Seneschal

    The word seneschal () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ducal, or noble household during the Middle Ages and early Modern period – historically a steward or majordomo of a medieval great house. In a medieval royal household, a seneschal was in charge of domestic arrangements and the administration of servants, which, in the medieval period particularly, meant the seneschal might oversee hundreds of laborers, servants and their associated responsibilities, and have a great deal of power in the community, at a time when much of the local economy was often based on the wealth and responsibilities of such a household. A second meaning is more specific, and concerns the late medieval and early modern nation of France, wherein the seneschal (French: sénéchal) was also a royal officer in charge of justice and control of the administration of certain southern provinces called seneschalties, holding a role equivalent to a northern French bailiff (bailli). In the United Kingdom the modern meaning of seneschal is primarily as an ecclesiastical term, referring to a cathedral official.

ChatGPT

  1. seneschal

    A seneschal is traditionally a steward or a title-holder in a medieval European royal or noble household responsible for the administration of properties, estates, or domestic arrangements, often involving various duties such as managing domestic staff, overseeing feasts, or handling financial matters. The term can also be used to refer to a high-level official or administrator in certain medieval and Renaissance universities or in a cathedral.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Seneschalnoun

    an officer in the houses of princes and dignitaries, in the Middle Ages, who had the superintendence of feasts and domestic ceremonies; a steward. Sometimes the seneschal had the dispensing of justice, and was given high military commands

  2. Etymology: [OF. seneschal, LL. seniscalcus, of Teutonic origin; cf. Goth. sineigs old, skalks, OHG. scalch, AS. scealc. Cf. Senior, Marshal.]

Wikidata

  1. Seneschal

    A seneschal was an officer in the houses of important nobles in the Middle Ages. In a medieval noble household a seneschal was in charge of domestic arrangements and the administration of servants. In the French administrative system of the Middle Ages, the sénéchal was also a royal officer in charge of justice and control of the administration in southern provinces, equivalent to the northern French bailli. It is equivalent to the Slavonic title stolnik or the English steward.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Seneschal

    sen′e-shal, n. a steward: a major-domo.—n. Sen′eschalship. [O. Fr., (Fr. sénéchal)—sin-s, old, skalks, a servant.]

The Nuttall Encyclopedia

  1. Seneschal

    an important functionary at the courts of Frankish princes, whose duty it was to superintend household feasts and ceremonies, functions equivalent to those of the English High Steward.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. seneschal

    In the origin of the office, probably an attendant of the servile class, who had the superintendence of the household of the Frankish kings. In the course of time, however, the seneschalship rose to be a position of dignity, held no longer by persons of servile race, but by military commanders, who were also invested with judicial authority. The lieutenants of the great feudatories often took the title of seneschal. A similar office in England and Scotland was designated steward.

Matched Categories

How to pronounce seneschal?

How to say seneschal in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of seneschal in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of seneschal in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Popularity rank by frequency of use

seneschal#100000#125228#333333

Translations for seneschal

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for seneschal »

Translation

Find a translation for the seneschal definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"seneschal." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/seneschal>.

Discuss these seneschal definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for seneschal? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Browse Definitions.net

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease
    A epidemic
    B adscripted
    C contiguous
    D proprietary

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for seneschal: