bylaw
UK /ˈbaɪ.lɔː/ · US /ˈbaɪ.lɔ/ noun
Forms bylaws by-law byelaw bye-law byrlaw birley birlie birlaw burlaw bourlaw
- noun A local custom or law of a settlement or district.
- noun (often in the plural) A rule made by a local authority to regulate its own affairs.
- noun (countable, in the singular) A numbered provision within such kind of legislation.
- noun A law or rule governing the internal affairs of an organization (e.g., corporation or business).
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English bylawe, bilawe, partly from Old English bīlage (“bylaw”) and partly from a variant of Middle English byrelawe, birlawe, from Old Norse býjar (“town's; settlement's”) + lǫg (“laws; jurisdiction”). Byrlaw is attested earlier in English but is unattested in Old Norse and the cognates in Scandinavian languages follow the development of bylaw: Danish bylov (“municipal law”), Swedish bylag and byalag.
Sources: Wiktionary — from the Wiktionary entry “bylaw”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details