A fee or tax paid for the right to burn or bake bread in a communal oven, particularly in medieval times.
From Old French 'brennage,' derived from 'brenner' (to burn), with the suffix '-age' (denoting a fee, tax, or right). Common in feudal systems where lords controlled essential facilities.
In medieval villages, bakers couldn't just use any oven—they had to pay the lord for the right to use the communal oven, and 'brennage' was literally a tax on the fire itself, one of many hidden fees that kept peasants dependent on feudal lords.
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