What does mortmain mean?
Mortmain is a formal legal term for the condition in which land or other property is inalienable because it is held under a restriction that prevents it from being passed on. In its best-known historical sense, it concerns ecclesiastical or charitable holdings that could not pass to lay heirs and were protected from alienating land. The doctrine also shaped the regulation of corporate landholding, and modern statutes may invoke mortmain when limiting what a corporation or charity may retain. In ordinary conversation the word is uncommon, appearing mainly in legal history, property law, and discussions of institutional land ownership. Its striking name preserves a vivid medieval metaphor: property belonged to a body or institution conceived as having a perpetual, “dead” hand. Knowing the word helps distinguish absolute inalienability from related ideas such as entail, trust, or a simple prohibition on sale. It is especially useful in historical and constitutional discussions of property, where the legal effect of a long-term institutional restriction is at issue.
nounThe legal doctrine or status by which land is inalienable, especially land held by a religious or charitable body and traditionally prevented from passing by inheritance. By extension, the tenure of property held under such a restriction.
- The legal doctrine or condition under which land or other property is inalienable and cannot be passed on by inheritance.
- The tenure of land or property held under such a restriction.
"Under the doctrine of mortmain, certain ecclesiastical lands could not be inherited by lay individuals."
"Crown lands were protected from alienation under the medieval doctrine of mortmain."
"The statute restricts the acquisition of land by a corporation to prevent an estate from being held in mortmain."
The plural is grammatical but rare; the word is normally used in the singular as a legal doctrine or form of tenure.
"The old legal records list several mortmains held by monasteries."
Mortmain comes from the medieval metaphor of the “dead hand”: property held by an institution that could not pass to the next generation.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does mortmain come from?
The word entered Middle English from Anglo-French mortemeyn, an alteration of Old French mort main, literally “dead hand.” The phrase reflects Medieval Latin manu mortua, “by a dead hand,” a metaphor for property tied to institutions such as the Church and therefore unable to pass to an heir. Its name is related to the Latin root meaning “dead” also found in words such as mortal and mortgage.
How mortmain is actually used
A formal, specialist legal and historical term found chiefly in property law, legal history, and discussions of ecclesiastical or charitable landholding.