fideicommissum

[ fahy-dee-ahy-kuh-mis-uhm ]

noun

, Civil Law.

, plural fi·de·i·com·mis·sa [fahy-dee-ahy-k, uh, -, mis, -, uh].

1. a request by a decedent that the heir or legatee to the estate convey a specified part of the estate to another person, or permit another person to enjoy such a part.

fideicommissum

/ ˌfɪdɪaɪkəˈmɪsəm /

noun

1. civil law a gift of property, usually by will, to be held on behalf of another who cannot receive the gift directly

Word History and Origins

Origin of fideicommissum¹

1720–30; < Late Latin fideī commissum entrusted to faith, equivalent to fideī, dative singular of fidēs faith + commissum, past participle of committere to commit

Word History and Origins

Origin of fideicommissum¹

C18: from Late Latin: (something) bequeathed in trust, from Latin fidēs trust, faith + committere to entrust

Example Sentences

A 2002 self-portrait of the outspoken Swedish artist Ann-Sofi Siden, it’s called “Fideicommissum,” which is the name of an obsolete, centuries-old Swedish aristocratic law by which property could be handed down only to male heirs.

From New York Times

You must be then both the first and the last, and you must not let him slip; not you, but your second, your aide-de-camp, your fideicommissum, or rather your protectress, the Comtesse de Montluisant.

From Project Gutenberg