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
major-domo, seneschalnoun
the chief steward or butler of a great household
Wiktionary
seneschalnoun
A steward in charge of a medieval nobleman's estate.
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
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
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
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
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
Etymology: [OF. seneschal, LL. seniscalcus, of Teutonic origin; cf. Goth. sineigs old, skalks, OHG. scalch, AS. scealc. Cf. Senior, Marshal.]
Wikidata
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
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
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
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
Numerology
Chaldean Numerology
The numerical value of seneschal in Chaldean Numerology is: 6
Pythagorean Numerology
The numerical value of seneschal in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5
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Translations for seneschal
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"seneschal." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/seneschal>.
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