Definitions for "Serfdom"
A system under which peasants were bound to the land and legally could not move of their own volition. The serf, however, had no legal title to the land, which could (along with the labor of the serf and his family) be bought, sold, or bestowed by the ruling lord. In Muscovite Russia, the system was codified in the 17th century and persisted until its abolition by Emperor Alexander II in 1861.
system used by nobles and rulers where peasants were bound first to the land they worked and then, by degrading obligations to the lords they served. (p. 566)
A system in which the serf, or labourer, was not allowed to leave the land that he or she worked on.
Keywords:  condition
The state or condition of a serf.