CHURL

A 'churl' (etymologically the same name as Charles), in its earliest Anglo-Saxon meaning, was simply "a man", but the word soon came to mean "a non-servile peasant", still spelt 'ceorle', and denoting the lowest rank of freemen. According to the Oxford English Dictionary it later came to mean the opposite of the nobility and royalty, "a common person". Says Chadwick, "from the time of Aethelstan the distinction between ''thegn'' and ''ceorl'' was the broad line of demarcation between the classes of society." This meaning held through the 15th century, but by then the word had taken on negative overtone, meaning "a country person" and then "a low fellow". By the 19th century, a new and pejorative meaning arose, "one inclined to uncivil or loutish behaviour".
The ''ceorles'' of Anglo-Saxon times lived in a largely free society, and one in which their fealty was principally to their king. His low status is shown by his ''wergild'' ("man-price"), which over a large part of England was fixed at 200 shillings (1/6 that of a ''thegn''). Agriculture was largely community-based and communal in open-field systems. This freedom was eventually eroded by the increase in power of feudal lords and the manorial system. Some scholars argue however that anterior to the encroachment of the manorial system the ''ceorles'' owed various services and rents to local lords and powers.
In Scandinavian languages, the word ''Karl'' has the same root as ''churl'' and means "man"; in German, ''Kerl'' is used to describe a somewhat rough and common man. ''Rígþula'', a poem in the Poetic Edda, explains the social classes as originating from the three sons of Ríg: Thrall, Karl and Earl (''Þræl'', ''Karl'' and ''Jarl''). This story has been interpreted in the context of the proposed trifunctional hypothesis of Proto-Indo-European society.
The word ''ceorle'' in a corrupted form is frequently found in British place names, in towns such as Carlton and Charlton, meaning "the farm of the churls". Names such as Carl and Charles are derived from ''churl'' or ''ceorle''.
Though the etymology of the Charles derivation is accepted in many circles, another notable theory has recently gained appraise among cultural historians. Records date back to the times of Transylvania, when the archetypical "Count" was often portrayed as a vampire. Upon accosting patrons seated at social gatherings, particularly cocktail parties, the vampire would often reveal himself from beneath his cape. The vampire would then raise his voice abruptly to the seated man and ask "So, how's Churl?" For fear of his own blood, the man would respond, "Churl's doing fine, he uh, he just had his period." The vampire would be at ease and spare the life of the seated man. The irreverent nature of such discourse soon became regarded as 'churlish'.

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★ Carl (name)