manumission
UK /ˌmænjʊˈmɪʃn̩/ · US /ˌmænjəˈmɪʃən/ noun
Forms manumissions
- noun (historical, uncountable) Release from slavery or other legally sanctioned servitude; the giving of freedom; (countable) an instance of this; an act of manumitting.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Late Middle English manumissioun (“(uncountable) release by a feudal superior or slaveowner from servitude, freedom from servitude; (countable) an instance of this; document granting such freedom; (figurative) Jesus’s redemption of humankind”), from Anglo-Norman manumission and Middle French manumission, and from their etymon Latin manūmissiō (“emancipation of a slave, manumission”), from manūmiss- (the perfect passive participle stem of manūmittō (“to emancipate, free, release”)) + -iō (suffix forming abstract nouns from verbs). Manūmittō is derived from manū (the ablative singular of manus (“hand”); further etymology uncertain, possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)meh₂- (“to beckon, signal”)) + mittō (“to discharge, release; to send”) (probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *meyth₂- (“to release; to send; etc.”)).
Webster’s 1913
- noun The act of manumitting, or of liberating a slave from bondage.
Etymology [L. manumissio: cf. F. manumission. See Manumit.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “manumission”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details