Daily AncestorSeisin
Seisin means legal possession of land as its owner; an old deed or will that says a man is "seized" of land means he holds it as owner.
Seisin comes from early English property law. It meant possession of land held as a freehold, which is close to, but not quite the same as, modern ownership. Seisin was once handed over in a ceremony called livery of seisin.
In deeds and wills you usually meet the verb form: "seized" or "seised." A man "seized in fee simple" of a tract held it outright as an estate of inheritance. The spelling seizin also appears.
As seen in a recordDeed in a county deed book, early 1800s
whereas the said Jno. Hart is lawfully seized in fee of the premises hereby conveyed
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Seisin." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/legal-land/seisin. Last checked 2026-10-10.