karl
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Also seen as: karls
Meaning · English
A medieval Scandinavian freeman.
Noun
Examples
Whatever its object the runrig system was not udal tenure, and therefore it appears to me to show a settlement of the unfree. Whether these were the karls or the thralls is the only problem, and I incline to think that there is little room for doubt that these were the karls. The thrall may have had
Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)
Sources & notes
Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).
Common questions
What does “karl” mean?
A medieval Scandinavian freeman.
Is “karl” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.