Commonalty

Forms: 3–4 comunaute, 4–6 co(m)munalte, 5 comonaltie, 6– commonalty (with from 20 to 30 variants following all the forms of co(m)mon, comen, comyn, etc., and of the suffix, -aute, -alte, -altie, etc.) [a. OF. comunalté, comunauté (= Pr. cominaltat, It. comunaltà), f. OF. and Pr. comunal, It. communale, L. commūnāl-is belonging to the community, f. commūne the community or state = COMMON sb.¹ 1. The L. type is commūnālitās (found in med.L.); hence the variant COMMONALITY.]

  † 1.  The people of a nation, state, city, etc., collectively; a community, commonwealth. Obs.

c. 1290.  Lives Saints (1887), 143. Ech þing þat fallez to harme In þe communaute.

c. 1300.  Beket, 1302. To desturbi thing that falleth to harm of communeaute.

1388.  Wyclif, Prov. xxix. 2. The comynalte schal be glad in the multipliyng of iust men.

c. 1425.  Wyntoun, Cron., VIII. xxxvii. 103. For to sawfe his comwnate Than wyth þe wardane tretyde he.

c. 1460.  Fortescue, Abs. & Lim. Mon., vii. (1885), 124. Ambassatours … ffrom grete communalties bi yonde þe see.

c. 1535.  Starkey, Lett. to Pole, in Strype, Eccl. Mem., I. xxxiii. 238. Persons which … have rooted a sedition in this communalty.

1547.  Homilies, I. Swearing (1859), 75. Good order … kept … in all commonalties, as boroughs, cities, towns, and villages.

1631.  Weever, Anc. Fun. Mon., 347. The Communaltie of Kent was neuer vanquished by the Conquerour.

  b.  A self-governing commonwealth, a republic, a democracy. Obs.

1604.  E. G[rimstone], trans. D’Acosta’s Hist. Indies, VI. x. 453. Many nations of the Indies have not indured any Kings … but live in comminalties, creating and appointing Captains and Princes, for certaine occasions onely.

1660.  Milton, Free Commw., Wks. 1738, I. 599. Which … may be best and soonest obtain’d, if every County … were made a kind of subordinate Commonalty or Commonwealth.

  2.  A body corporate; a corporation.

1425.  Ord. Whittington’s Alms-house (1776), in Entick, London, IV. 354. The commonalty of the craft of mercers.

1520.  Sir R. Elyot, Will, in Elyot’s Gov. (1883), I. App. 315. The Maire and cominaltie of the Citie of New Sarum.

1523.  Act 14 & 15 Hen. VIII., c. 5. One body and perpetuall comminaltie or felowship of the facultie of Physicke.

1594.  West, Symbol., II. § 20. A Maior without his comminaltie.

1828.  W. Smith, Univ. College, 369. The University to forfeit 20l. yearly to the Mayor and Commonalty of London.

1847.  C. G. Addison, Contracts, I. i. § 2 (1883), 88. If a bond be given by the commonalty in the absence of the mayor, the body corporate is not bound.

1885.  Act 48 & 49 Vict., c. 76 § 12. Licensed by the master, wardens, and commonalty of watermen and lightermen of the River Thames.

  3.  The general body of the community; the common people, as distinguished from those in authority, from those of rank and title, or ‘the upper classes’ generally; the ‘commons’ collectively.

a. 1340.  Hampole, Psalter, liv. 10. In þe comunaute of folke.

c. 1440.  Generydes, 254. Of hir lordes and of hir comenaute.

1483.  Caxton, Gold. Leg., 431/4. Accompanyed wyth the nobles and moche comynaltee of his royame.

1531.  Elyot, Gov., I. i. Plebs in englishe, is called the comunaltee, whiche signifieth onelye the multitude, wherin be conteined the base and vulgare inhabitantes, not auanced to any honour or dignitee.

1581.  Mulcaster, Positions, xxxix. (1887), 197. Either gentlemen or of the commonalty.

1756–7.  trans. Keysler’s Trav. (1760), I. 179. The commonalty of both sexes wear straw hats.

1841.  Lytton, Nt. & Morn., I. ii. One of those families which yearly vanish from the commonalty into the peerage.

1874.  Miss Mulock, My Mother & I, 89. As well-to-do commonalty likes to patronise poor gentility.

  transf.  1667.  Milton, P. L., VII. 489. The Parsimonious Emmet … join’d in her popular Tribes Of Commonaltie.

  † 4.  The Commons as an estate of the realm acting by their elected representatives; hence, the representative members of the Commons. Obs.

1580.  Sidney, Arcadia (1622), 110. Enacted, not onely by the commaltie of Passions, but agreed vnto by her most noble Thoughts.

1581.  Lambarde, Eiren., IV. xiii. (1588), 540. Both Gentlemen and Knights do serve in the Parliament, as members of the Communaltie.

1630.  R. Johnson, Kingd. & Commw., 174. The three Estates, of the Clergie, the Nobilitie, and Comminaltie.

1648.  D. Jenkins, Wks., 15. The ayds granted by the Commonalty.

  5.  transf. The general or universal body.

1594.  Hooker, Eccl. Pol., III. (T.). I … will use the secret acknowledgement of the commonalty bearing record of the God of gods.

1659.  T. White, Mid. State Souls, 37. Not … by a few wise or extraordinarily religious persons, but by the commonalty and universality of Christians.

1710.  Steele, Tatler, No. 197, ¶ 2. Writings which the Commonalty of Scholars have pushed into the World.

1830.  Galt, Lawrie T., I. i. (1849), 3. The commonalty of mankind.

  † 6.  In commonalty: in public. Out of commonalty: in private, in secret. Obs.

1303.  R. Brunne, Handl. Synne, p. 186. l. 5964. Hyt ys coueytyse and þeft pryue To bye þyng out of cominalte [v.r. comnalte].

c. 1380.  Wyclif, Serm., Sel. Wks. I. 110. He wolde in comunalte do þis dede, and not þus oonli in desert.