multigeniture

multigeniture

English

Noun

multigeniture (uncountable)

1. An equal division of property among the sons.
   • 1984, Lee J. Alston and Morton Owen Schapiro, Inheritance Laws Across Colonies: Causes and Consequences, The Journal of Economic History Vol. 44, No. 2, The Tasks of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, pages 277-287

     In the North, multigeniture helped motivate family labor, whereas the passive acceptance of the British inheritance system of primogeniture in the South rested on its promotion of large plantations that could capture economies of scale.

   • 2010, Gary Walton, History of the American Economy, 11e, South-Western, Cengage Learning, page 33

     In the Middle and New England colonies (except in Rhode Island and New York), multigeniture was typically followed, with an equal division of property among the sons. Over time, primogeniture perpetuated and built comparatively larger estates.

Related terms

• postremogeniture
• primogeniture