Latifundia definition world history
Latifundium: A Comprehensive Overview of Its Legal Significance
Definition & meaning
The term "latifundium" refers to a large private estate or landholding, typically used for agricultural purposes. Originating from Latin, the word combines "latus," meaning broad, and "fundus," meaning land. Historically, latifundia were prevalent in ancient Rome, particularly during the later centuries of the Roman Republic. Today, these extensive estates can still be found in regions like Latin America and Italy, where they often encompass various smaller parcels of land.
Table of content
Legal use & context
In legal contexts, latifundium is relevant primarily in property law and agricultural regulations. It may involve issues related to land ownership, agricultural rights, and zoning laws. Individuals dealing with latifundia may require legal forms for property transactions, leases, or agricultural agreements, which can often be managed using templates provided by US Legal Forms.
Key legal elements
Real-world examples
Here are a couple of examples of abatement:
Example 1: A family owns a latifundium in Italy that spans several hundred acres, primarily used for olive farming.
latifundia
noun
There is
one
meaning in OED's entry for the noun
latifundia
. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.
Entry status
OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.
About 0.1occurrences per million words in modern written English
1750
0.0072
1760
0.018
1770
0.015
1780
0.017
1790
0.017
1800
0.02
1810
0.012
1820
0.013
1830
0.015
1840
0.017
1850
0.022
1860
0.03
1870
0.038
1880
0.044
1890
0.053
1900
0.071
1910
0.1
1920
0.14
1930
0.16
1940
0.21
1950
0.25
1960
0.24
1970
0.22
1980
0.19
1990
0.14
2000
0.1
2010
0.079
/ˌlatᵻˈfʌndiə/
lat-uh-FUN-dee-uh
/ˌleɪtᵻˈfʌndiə/
lay-tuh-FUN-dee-uh
/ˌlædəˈfəndiə/
lad-uh-FUN-dee-uh
Earliest known use
mid 1600s
The earliest known use of the noun
latifundia
is in the mid 1600s.
OED's earliest evidence for
latifundia
is from before 1636, in the writing of Thomas Westcote, topographer.
latifundia
is a borrowing from
Latin
.
Etymon
Who were the Romans?
The Roman Empire began in 27BC when
Augustus
became the first official Roman emperor.
At its height, the Roman Empire spanned as far west as
northern England
and as far east as
Syria
.
The
emperor
was the leader of the Roman Empire and had powers similar to a king.
The emperor was assisted in passing laws by the SenateA political group of men, responsible for making laws in the Roman Empire. They were appointed by elected officials..
The Roman
army
was an important factor in helping them
conquer
and
control
their empire.
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The origins of the Roman Empire
According to Roman scholar Marcus Terentius Varro, the city of Rome was founded in April
753BC
. and was formed from settlements gathered around the
River Tiber
.
The mythA story about early history, often involving supernatural beings or events. Myths feature heavily in the cultures of Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece. of Romulus and Remus was the Roman explanation for the creation of Rome. Romulus and Remus, two quarrelsome brothers who were raised by a wolf, could not agree on where to build a new city, so they consulted the birds to see which brother had the
Towards a Better Distribution of Land: the Challenge of Agrarian Reform
11. In recent decades, various forms of economic activity based on the use of natural resources have steadily expanded into land traditionally occupied by indigenous populations.
In most cases, the rights of the indigenous inhabitants have been ignored when the expansion of large-scale agricultural concerns, the establishment of hydroelectric plants and the exploitation of mineral resources, and of oil and timber in areas of expanding agricultural frontiers have been decided, planned and implemented.10
The law is respected while all this is taking place. However, the property rights upheld by the law are in conflict with the right of use of the soil deriving from an occupation and ownership of the land the origins of which are lost in memory.
In the culture and spirituality of indigenous populations, land is seen as the basis of every value and as the unifying factor that nourishes their identity. However, when the first great landholdings were formed, these peoples lost the legal right to ownership of land on which they had lived for centuries which means that they can now be dispossessed without warnin