territoryn.1
/ˈtɛrᵻt(ə)ri/, U.S. /ˈtɛrəˌtɔri/ 1.
a. The land or district lying round a city or town and under its jurisdiction; spec. = territorium n. Also: the land attached to a temple, monastery, or other religious foundation. Now historical.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > jurisdiction of or areas under specific authorities > [noun] > under a town
territorya1398
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > town as opposed to country > town or city > [noun] > with adjoining territory > adjoining territory
territorya1398
freedom1423
liberty?1435
terroira1460
territor1466
fielda1533
lowy1576
nomarchy1656
territorium1720
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xv. xxxviii. 746 Campania is a prouynce of Ytalie bitwene þe territorie of Rome and Apulia.
a1450 (c1435) J. Lydgate Life SS. Edmund & Fremund (Harl.) l. 1011 in C. Horstmann Altengl. Legenden (1881) 2nd Ser. 431 At Lyncolne withynne the teritorye..the martir..To hym appered.
1484 Rolls of Parl.: Richard III (Electronic ed.) Parl. Jan. 1484 §12. m. 13 Persons havyng landes and tenementes in the seid Netheracastr' and within the territory of the same.
?1530 J. Rastell Pastyme of People sig. Eiiii Wherefor swan[us] dyspysyng ye holy marter enteryd ye teritory of seynt Edmond & spoylyd ye countrey.
1598 J. Manwood Treat. Lawes Forrest i. f. 1v This word [Territorie] is most properly a circuit of ground, contayning a libertie within it selfe, wherein diuers men haue land within it, and yet the same Territorie it selfe doth lie open and not inclosed.
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan ii. xxii. 118 As they governed the City of Rome, and Territories adjacent.
1676 J. Moxon Use Astron. Playing-cards 20 Icarus..having received of the God Bacchus a Flagon of Wine..travelled therewith into the Territories of Athens.
1751 Chambers's Cycl. (ed. 7) s.v., In 493 Sebas was established exarch, or chief, of all the anchorets within the territory of Jerusalem.
1765–8 J. Erskine Inst. Law Scotl. ii. iv. §8 This service of watching and warding..is due by the burgesses within the..territory of the borough.
1836 H. Wheaton Elem. Internat. Law 64 The city of Cracow in Poland, with its territory, was declared by the congress of Vienna to be a free, independent, and neutral state.
1879 E. A. Freeman Hist. Ess. 3rd ser. 292 The land between Pentelikos and the Saronic Gulf..would form a considerable city territory according to Greek notions.
1945 Biblical Archaeol. 8 74 Trade was the..source of a large part of this wealth. Another source was the large territory which the city owned.
1999 Nat. Geogr. Dec. (Greeks Suppl.) 1/6 Called a polis, the city-state linked a major town with its surrounding territory to form a sovereign state.
b. The extent of the land belonging to or under the jurisdiction of a ruler, state, or group of people. Also figurative.Often applied contextually to the land or country itself of a state, as French territory, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > [noun] > territory governed by a ruler or state
demesnea1387
principalitya1398
territory?a1439
dominationc1440
statea1500
dominion1512
dition1542
heretochy1587
domain1601
sovereignty1715
possession1797
daimiote1870
ealdormanry1870
a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) iii. l. 822 (MED) Anchus nolde cese, For comoun proffit in his affeccioun, Ther teritories taugmenten and encrese In all the cuntres abouten.
c1470 tr. R. D'Argenteuil's French Bible (Cleveland) (1977) 89 (MED) Vaspasian..went by alle the Iuwery londis and territories and..destrued alle theire castellis and forteressis, citees, tovnes, and villagis.
a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) II. f. viv A Cytie or towne callyd menne or meune within the Londe or Territorye of ye Emperour.
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Acts xxviii. 86 We came to Rhegium, a citie in ye borders of Italy situate and lyinge within the territory that belongeth to the Brutians.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) v. v. 102 Welcome braue Earle into our Territories . View more context for this quotation
a1687 W. Petty Polit. Arithm. (1691) x. 114 Not being above a sixth or seventh of the whole Territory of England.
1765 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. Introd. iv. 93 The kingdom of England, over which our municipal laws have jurisdiction, includes not, by the common law, either Wales, Scotland, or Ireland, or any other part..except the territory of England only.
1789 Constitution U.S. iv. §3 in archives.gov (accessed 18 Dec. 2019) Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States.
1835 C. Thirlwall Hist. Greece I. i. 3 The original Hellas was included in the territory of a little tribe in the south of Thessaly.
1867 Fortn. Rev. July 118 The Treaty has done nothing to preserve the inviolacy of the Luxembourg territory.
1908 Athenæum 12 Dec. 754/1 The rearrangement of frontiers and territories by Napoleon.
1954 J. R. R. Tolkien Two Towers iv. iv. 259 This land, fair-seeming still, was nonetheless now territory of the Enemy.
1977 News of World 17 Apr. 1/6 After visiting an African township and a tribal territory, Dr Owen had his second meeting with..the Prime Minister.
2010 N.Y. Rev. Bks. 29 Apr. 64/3 The Kerry-Lugar Act..makes the support conditional on the Pakistani government taking effective action against militants in its territory.
c. Law (formerly chiefly Scots Law). The defined district over which a judge's jurisdiction extends and to which it is restricted.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal power > [noun] > extent or range of jurisdiction > a district > under specific jurisdiction
sheriffdom1385
wardenry1462
the verge (of the court)1529
sheriffwick1535
circuit1574
territoryc1626
Home Circuit1664
hundred-court1671
byrlaw1850
c1626 H. Bisset Rolment Courtis (1920) I. 174 Twa kynd[is] of exceptionis ar competent aganis the judge [etc.]..or be ressone of the personis pleydand..nocht duelland within his territorie or iurisdictioun.
1748 Def. or Objections for His Majesty's Advocate 3 Feb. 2 A Territorial Jurisdiction cannot subsist without the Territory.
1765–8 J. Erskine Inst. Law Scotl. I. ii. §16. 27 Since no judge can pronounce sentence on persons or subjects without his territory, civil jurisdiction cannot be founded, unless the defender..reside within the judge's territory.
1838 W. Bell Dict. Law Scotl. Territory of a Judge is the district over which his jurisdiction extends in causes and in judicial acts proper to him, and beyond which he has no judicial authority.
1891–2 Sc. Law Reporter 29 74/2 If the subject in question be immoveable, the judge of the territory where it is situated is the sole judge competent.
1905 Sc. Law Rev. 21 60 If the respondent in an action..is outside the territory of the judge before whom the action is brought..the judge has no jurisdiction.
1934 J. Mackintosh Rom. Law in Mod. Pract. vi. 107 The defendant must be found within the judge's territory and be personally cited there by warrant issuing from his Court.
1985 L. G. Wrenn in J. A. Coriden et al. Code of Canon Law vii. i. iv. 964/2 It has always been recognized in both Roman and in canon law, that as a general rule, a judge cannot exercise his jurisdiction outside of his own territory.
d. Zoology. An area selected by an animal or a group of animals and defended against others, esp. of the same sex or species.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > by habitat > habitat > [noun]
walka1425
seat of living1607
territory1774
habitat1796
stamping ground1821
personal space1937
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth V. 301 All these small birds mark out a territory to themselves, which they will permit none of their own species to remain in.
1840 J. J. Audubon Birds of Amer. I. 213 The territory she seemed determined to claim was circumscribed by the tops of a cluster of Virginian junipers.
1882 P. Robinson Noah's Ark i The lion, again, they say, is King in Africa, yet the gorilla Zulus it over the forests within the lion's territory.
1953 N. Tinbergen Herring Gull's World ix. 82 A Herring Gull returns to the same colony, and often even to the same territory.
1981 Oxf. Compan. Animal Behaviour 550/2 Territories range in size from the few millimetres that separate barnacles..on a rock to the distances of several kilometres that separate neighbouring herds of African buffalo.
2005 Brit. Life Jan. 25/2 Otters have regular ‘sprainting’ places where they deposit their droppings, known as spraints, to mark territories.
e. Sport. An area defended by a team or player in a game such as football, hockey, baseball, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > characteristics of team ball games > [noun] > parts of playing area
outfield1851
goal line1862
centreline1863
goalside1865
territory1867
goalmouth1871
box1881
half1888
goal area1902
penalty area1905
orchard1913
penalty box1914
area1925
D1927
keyhole1936
penalty spot1937
six-yard box1954
1867 London Society Dec. 569/1 The scrummage succeeding a short run by one of their vigilant half-backs is but some eight or ten yards from their opponents' territory.
1896 Field 4 Jan. 22/2 A moment later, the visitors..invaded the home territory. Here Jones got smartly away..and..scored a..try.
1910 St. Nicholas Nov. 26/1 When a team desires to kick out of danger into their opponents' territory, the kick should be made as long as possible.
1963 Times 17 Apr. 3/6 Everton took root in Birmingham territory, yet..the Birmingham defensive covering was such that there were serious doubts about the Merseysiders' ability to create the vital chink.
2010 Portland (Maine) Press Herald (Nexis) 18 Apr. c 3 With less than five minutes left in the period, Portland's Kyle Wanvig and Manchester's Alec Martinez met deep in Manchester territory.
f. An area in which one has or claims certain rights, or for which one has responsibility with regard to a particular type of activity; spec. the area over which a goods distributor or sales representative operates; the area controlled by a (criminal) gang, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > selling > [noun] > area covered by salesman or firm
outride1879
territory1898
test-market1958
geography1983
1898 Proc. National Stock Growers' Convent. 282 This company is doing a most profitable business and is steadily extending its territory.
1907 F. H. Burnett Shuttle xxxviii. 379 Nick Baumgarten, who having for some time ‘beaten’ certain streets as assistant salesman.., had recently been elevated to a ‘territory’ of his own.
1938 F. D. Sharpe Sharpe of Flying Squad xix. 203 So valuable had become the ‘territories’ of this blackmail and bullying racket that bitter warfare broke out between mobs.
1977 Evening Gaz. (Middlesbrough) 11 Jan. 9/1 (advt.) A career in sales... Local territories available.
1990 J. Cummings & E. Volkman Goombata ii. 46 The gangs..were primarily concerned with ‘turf’, the doctrine of defending a gang's territory.
2004 New Yorker 19 Apr. 108/2 The sales territory he had in mind was too large to be covered by even an epically ambitious teen-ager.
2. A tract of land, or district of undefined boundaries; a region.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > land > tract > [noun]
placec1325
piecec1330
soil1430
groundc1436
territory?a1439
land1604
strain1614
track1686
reaching1727
terrain1766
land-score1828
outstretch1858
a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) ii. l. 2003 (MED) In Affrik stant the teritorie Wher she bilte this cite delectable.
a1475 (a1447) O. Bokenham Mappula Angliae in Englische Studien (1887) 10 29 (MED) Linadius Alpins sonne, kynge of the Scottis, distroyed þe Pyctis, & þe terrytorye the wch is be-twix Twede & the scottysshe see he annectyd to his kyngdam.
1570–6 W. Lambard Perambulation Kent 329 Round about the Towne of Tunbridge, lyeth a territorie, or compasse of ground, commonly called, the Lowy.
1598 J. Manwood Treat. Lawes Forrest i. §1. 1 a A Forrest is certen Territorie of wooddy grounds & fruitfull pastures.
1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 112 The most fertile territories of Aniou.
1670 J. Milton Hist. Brit. ii. 90 Having recover'd much Territory about Rhine, where the German inrodes before had long insulted.
1759 W. Harte Hist. Life Gustavus Adolphus I. 430 Though one half of the country be wild, woody, and scantily peopled,..yet the other half..vies with any tract or territory in the empire.
1788 Encycl. Brit. I. 617/2 This immense extent of unappropriated western territory, or vacant unsettled land.
1834 L. Ritchie Wanderings by Seine 5 It was necessary to wrest a territory from the sea itself for [Havre's] foundation.
1870 J. Yeats Nat. Hist. Commerce 89 The central territory is covered with forests. Woods stretch from St. Petersburg to Moscow almost without a break.
1945 E. Waugh Brideshead Revisited 7 Here the close, homogeneous territory of housing estates and cinemas ended and the hinterland began.
1968 Brit. Jrnl. Psychiatry 114 1054/1 The turbulent lands which compose this vast territory form an enormous melting pot.
2009 Observer 15 Feb. 38/1 The broad swathe of territory stretching from central Afghanistan to Pakistan's Indus river.
3. figurative.
a. An area of knowledge; a sphere of thought or action, a province. Also in figurative contexts.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > materiality > immateriality > [noun] > immaterial or incorporeal thing > realm or kingdom
realmc1300
ream1589
kingdom1600
territory1640
terrain1860
the mind > mental capacity > perception or cognition > faculty of ideation > topic, subject-matter > materials of topic > [noun] > of particular subject
subjecta1400
subject?1541
tractate1589
subject matter1591
territory1640
donnée1876
the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > meaning > meaning of linguistic unit > [noun]
to owe a wolda1325
meaninga1387
significationa1398
understanding1433
pretensionc1443
intellect?a1475
tendment1519
sense1530
reciprocation1604
sensing1613
denotation1614
apprehension1615
explicitness1630
sounda1631
notion1646
bodementa1657
means1656
force1709
notation1829
connotation1865
content1875
territory1875
1640 E. Reynolds Treat. Passions xxxviii. 485 [Going] beyond their owne bounds, into the Territories (as I may so speake) of another Science.
1669 J. Owen Truth & Innocence Vindicated 253 The Territory of Conscience is confined unto mens thoughts, judgements and perswasions.
1712 J. Arbuthnot John Bull Still in Senses vii. 31 It is impossible to march up close to the Frontiers of Frugality, without entering the Territories of Parsimony.
1799 C. Ludger tr. A. von Kotzebue Reconciliation iii. vii. 79 Phil. Good offices from the hands of a foe— Blum. Are the first steps on the territory of friendship.
1852 H. Rogers Eclipse of Faith 311 The whole field of historic investigation seems more or less the territory of scepticism.
1875 W. D. Whitney Life & Growth Lang. vii. 110 It is the customary office of a word to cover, not a point, but a territory, and a territory that is irregular, heterogeneous, and variable.
1927 Daily Express 30 Nov. 3/1 I am sure I took in entirely too much territory when I said that his work should be ignored.
1977 J. I. M. Stewart Madonna of Astrolabe v. 93 She was frowning now, aware of having got on territory she hadn't designed to tread.
1993 N.Y. Times 18 Apr. h5/4 In some ways, this is Graham Greene territory—bright and flowery on the outside, gray and withering within.
2009 Independent 8 Oct. (Life section) 10/3 These foods are indelibly part of our upbringing. Their terminal naffness has passed into a new territory of kitsch acceptance.
b. Medicine. The region of the body or of an organ served by a specific nerve or blood vessel or group of nerves or vessels.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > part of body > [noun] > region
steadc1000
regiona1398
zona1706
territory1824
tract1841
1824 London Med. & Physical Jrnl. 51 237 The ganglionic system receives impressions..and communicates them; but these occurrences take place only within its own territory.
1878 Monthly Abstr. Med. Sci. Sept. 399 A girl..exhibited paralysis and atrophy of those muscles of the right forearm supplied by the median and ulnar nerves, while the territory of the radial nerve remained normal.
1897 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. IV. 125 The supply of blood to the corresponding hepatic territory is cut off.
1943 P. G. Kreider Measles Encephalomyelitis 2 in Bacteriol., Pathol. & Etiol. Measles The veins of the vasa corona were affected, while branches belonging to the territory of the veins of the anterior fissure were spared.
2006 C. M. Court-Brown et al. Trauma vi. xxxviii. 498/2 Paraesthesia and hypoesthesia may occur in the territory of the nerves.
4. A protectorate or other dependency; an organized division of a country (esp. Canada, Australia, India, and the United States) administered by a federal or external government, but not yet admitted to the full rights of a state. Frequently with capital initial. Formerly in the United States a territory was a region or district in the West not yet admitted to the Union as a state but having its own legislature, with a governor and other officers appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The last territories to be admitted as U.S. States were Alaska and Hawaii in 1959. The United States still retains a number of small overseas territories.With the: (Australian) the Northern Territory of Australia.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > jurisdiction of or areas under specific authorities > [noun] > under federal or external government
territory1784
1784 T. Jefferson (title) Jefferson's proposed division of the Western Territory into new States.
1799 J. Adams Let. 12 Nov. in Wks. (1854) IX. 41 The organization of the government of the Mississippi territory..should perhaps be mentioned to Congress.
1806 Z. M. Pike Acct. Exped. Sources Mississippi (1810) 90 A certificate that he had paid the tax required by a law of the Indian territory, on all retailers of merchandize.
1854 Act U.S.A. Congr. in Encycl. Brit. (1860) XXI. 442/2 Not to legislate Slavery into any Territory or State.
1897 C. R. Tuttle Golden North 119 Two new provisional districts or territories have been erected in the far northwest by the Canadian government.
1930 G. F. Sayers Handbk. Tanganyika iii. 35 The earlier Bantu races, which are represented in Tanganyika Territory by the Nyamwesi.
1969 Northern Territory News (Darwin) 11 July 3/2 It also has mining interests in the Territory and Queensland.
1976 Ld. Home Way Wind Blows xiii. 176 Having brought up our once dependent territories to be nations in their own right, it was not for us to insist that they should stay tied to our apron strings.
1992 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 10 Nov. a4/5 The Royal Canadian Mint selected..scenes from every province and the two northern territories.
2008 Guardian 15 Dec. 22/1 A prescription painkiller used to alleviate the stress of living in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Phrases
to come (also go) with the territory: to be a concomitant or inevitable element (esp. an unwelcome one) of a role or situation.
ΚΠ
1949 A. Miller Death of Salesman ii. 89 A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory.
1977 Washington Post 24 Apr. a13/3 I think that with great success, sniping and attacks seem to go with the territory.
1993 National Ballet Mag. (Toronto) 24 Feb. 56/1 Dancers are hardly ever not in pain. It goes with the territory.
2000 N. Hornby Speaking with Angel p. xiv All parents of autistic children know the terrible cycle of guilt and apathy that comes with the territory.
Compounds
C1.
a. General attributive, as territory limits, etc.
ΚΠ
1898 in Rep. Commissioner Indian Affairs in Ann. Rep. U.S. Dept. of Interior, 1898 535 It is believed that this language authorizes the company to prospect and mine within the territory limits defined.
1913 Pop. Sci. Monthly Apr. 374 He was sent to act in an advisory capacity to the Hawaiian board of health and other branches of the territory government.
1963 E. Mayr Animal Species & Evol. xiv. 416 Sedentary habits, territory occupancy, and philopatry..tend to reduce the amount of random dispersal.
1994 Amer. Demographics Aug. (verso front cover) (advt.) The geographic analysis of key market data for site selection, territory design..and more.
2003 D. L. Scott Wall St. Words (ed. 3) 378 Interest from territory bonds is generally exempt from taxation by federal, state, and local authorities.
b. Objective.
territory holder n.
ΚΠ
1881 H. W. Clarke tr. Niẓāmī Ganjavī Sikandar Nāma 435 Make the territories (of Irán) captive to kings; Make one in every direction the territory-holder.
1929 E. M. Nicholson How Birds Live iii. 31 The solitary territory-holder can only deal with single intruders.
1989 Jrnl. Zool. 219 128 Although no actual matings were observed, it was assumed that the male territory holder was the father of the cubs of the alpha female.
2004 Behavioural Ecol. & Sociobiology 56 531 A territory holder that is..foraging on..its own territory cannot benefit from stealing from its neighbour.
territory-holding adj.
ΚΠ
1832 Sc. Jurist 4 253/2 The burgh of Lanark had a landward territory holding burgage.
1900 Le Mars (Iowa) Globe 17 Nov. England and other territory holding nations have learned this to their sorrow.
1962 Sci. Surv. 15 238 A ‘territory-holding’ male robin will attack a bundle of red feathers.
2006 Condor 108 564/2 The previous territory-holding female was never detected again.
C2.
territory rights n. the rights by which a person or group of persons is permitted to operate in or to exploit the resources of a territory (in various senses).
ΚΠ
1876 Jrnl. Royal Geogr. Soc. of London 46 229 In 1869, on the creation of the Dominion of Canada, the territory rights of the Hudson's Bay Company were sold to the new Dominion.
1947 Pop. Mech. Apr. 63 (advt.) Get exclusive territory rights now before national consumer advertising starts when territories will not be available.
1979 C. Symmons Maritime Zones of Islands in Internat. Law 251 Continental territory rights are in such a view to be superior to insular territory rights.
2004 New Media Age (Nexis) 29 Jan. 7 Neither was able to confirm launch dates due to the challenges involved in unravelling the different territory rights and retail pricing issues.
territory wool n. U.S. wool produced from sheep reared west of the Mississippi River in a (former) territory of the United States; cf. note at sense 4.
ΚΠ
1876 Boston Daily Advertiser 30 Dec. An excess of 285,000 lbs fall California and 638,000 lbs Territory wool.
1920 Ann. Amer. Acad. Polit. & Social Sci. 89 62/1 (table) One-half Territory wool..$1.75 per pound.
2006 R. D. Goodriche Farm & Agric. Issues ix. 132 Territory wool is used to make better quality apparel.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2011; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† territoryn.2
α. late Middle English tereitorye, late Middle English territorie.
β. late Middle English territoire.
Obsolete.
A rising ground, hill, or eminence.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > land > landscape > high land > rising ground or eminence > [noun]
link931
rise1240
motea1300
bentc1405
mote-hill1475
territory1477
height1487
rising1548
raising1572
linch1591
mount1591
swelling1630
up1637
vertex1641
advance1655
ascendant1655
eminency1662
ascent1663
eminence1670
swell1764
elevation1799
embreastment1799
upwith1819
lift1825
salita1910
turtle-back1913
upwarp1917
upslope1920
whaleback1928
1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 94 We shal enhabite with peple the lowe montaignes & the territoires.
1481 W. Caxton tr. Siege & Conqueste Jerusalem (1893) xxi. 53 They..began to reassemble, and gadred them to gydre on a territorie.
1481 W. Caxton tr. Siege & Conqueste Jerusalem (1893) clviii. 233 Archys is a Cyte of the lande of Fenyce, and standeth atte foote of a montayne named Lybane, in a tereitorye moche stronge.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2011; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1a1398
n.21477