noun
odal
Odal (noun) means Land that could be passed down within a family, held under an old system used by early Scandinavian and other Germanic peoples.
noun
1
Land that could be passed down within a family, held under an old system used by early Scandinavian and other Germanic peoples.
"At the time of the laws owners of odal had, it appears, certain powers of selling their odal, but even then it was not an uncontrolled right of a man to do what he would with his own."
— Frederic Seebohm, Tribal Custom in Anglo-Saxon Law (1902)
2
The right of ownership over this kind of inherited family land.
"Generations of ancestors may have given an extended family the right to the land, in the same way that later Norse settlers obtained an odal right to the land they farmed."
— Liv Kjørsvik Schei, The Islands of Orkney (2000)
3
A letter of the ancient Elder Futhark alphabet, written ᛟ, linked with land passed down through a family.
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Etymology
Comes from Icelandic óðal (“estate”). It is cognate with Norwegian odel, odal (“allodium, patrimony”) and Old English ēþel (“homeland”); compare athel, Odelsthing.
Rhymes for odal
See all rhymes for odal →Frequently asked questions
What is the meaning of odal?
"odal" (noun) means land that could be passed down within a family, held under an old system used by early Scandinavian and other Germanic peoples.
What are the different meanings of odal?
"odal" has 3 main meanings: 1. Land that could be passed down within a family, held under an old system used by early Scandinavian and other Germanic peoples; 2. The right of ownership over this kind of inherited family land; 3. A letter of the ancient Elder Futhark alphabet, written ᛟ, linked with land passed down through a family.
