A form of property ownership that restricts inheritance to direct descendants, preventing the owner from selling or willing the property to others. This estate automatically passes to the owner's children and their children in perpetuity.
From Old French 'fee' (feudal estate) and 'tail' from 'taille' meaning 'cut' or 'limited,' literally a 'cut' or restricted fee. Developed in medieval England to keep large estates within noble families across generations.
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