An allowance or pension of food, clothing, or other provisions granted to a dependent, especially in medieval monasteries or charitable institutions.
From Old French corodie, possibly derived from Latin corredium (supplies); used in medieval English documents describing provisions given to monks, pensioners, or dependents living in institutions.
Corodies reveal how medieval institutions were essentially early social security systems—monasteries kept people on their 'payroll' as a form of charity or obligation, and corody records are some of the oldest bureaucratic documents we have.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.