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:''This page is primarily about the classic, or medieval, Western European form of feudalism. For feudalism as practiced in other societies, as well as that of the Europeans, see Examples of feudalism.'' Feudalism was a combination of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour. Although derived from the Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),〔''feodum'' – see (''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law'' ), by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.〕 then in use, the term ''feudalism'' and the system it describes were not conceived of as a formal political system by the people living in the Middle Ages. In its classic definition, by François-Louis Ganshof (1944),〔François Louis Ganshof (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3d ed: 1976.〕 ''feudalism'' describes a set of reciprocal legal and military obligations among the warrior nobility, revolving around the three key concepts of lords, vassals and fiefs.〔 A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch (1939), includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but those of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the clergy, and the peasantry bound by manorialism; this is sometimes referred to as a "feudal society". Since the publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), there has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whether feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.〔〔〔〔〔("The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" ), by Robert Harbison, 1996, Western Kentucky University.〕 ==Definition== There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars.〔("Feudalism" ), by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.〕〔("Feudalism?" ), by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.〕 The adjective ''feudal'' was coined in the 17th century, and the noun ''feudalism'', often used in a political and propaganda context, was not coined until the 19th century,〔 from the French ''féodalité'' ("feudality"), itself an 18th-century creation. In a classic definition by François-Louis Ganshof (1944),〔François Louis Ganshof (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3d ed: 1976.〕 ''feudalism'' describes a set of reciprocal legal and military obligations among the warrior nobility, revolving around the three key concepts of lords, vassals and fiefs,〔 though Ganshof himself noted that his treatment related only to the "narrow, technical, legal sense of the word". A broader definition, as described in Marc Bloch's ''Feudal Society'' (1939),〔 includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but those of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the clergy, and those living by their labour, most directly the peasantry bound by manorialism; this order is often referred to as "feudal society", echoing Bloch's usage. Since the publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974)〔 and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994),〔 there has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whether feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.〔〔〔("The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" ), by Robert Harbison, 1996, Western Kentucky University.〕 Outside a European context, the concept of feudalism is often used only by analogy (called ''semi-feudal''), most often in discussions of feudal Japan under the shoguns and sometimes medieval and Gondarine Ethiopia.〔 However, some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as ancient Egypt, the Parthian empire, the Indian subcontinent and the Antebellum and Jim Crow American South.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Reader's Companion to Military History )〕 The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied—often inappropriately or pejoratively—to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes similar to those of medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.〔Cf. for example: 〕 Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'' has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.〔〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Feudalism」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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