Legal Definitions - locarium

Locarium refers to the historical term for rent.

In legal and historical contexts, "locarium" was used to describe the payment made for the temporary use or occupation of property, similar to how we understand rent today.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Imagine a medieval manuscript detailing the financial records of a lord. One entry might read: "Received 10 shillings as locarium from John, for the use of the north field during the planting season."

  This illustrates locarium as the payment John made to the lord for the temporary right to use the land, which is essentially rent for agricultural purposes.

• Consider a historical legal dispute from the 17th century concerning a merchant who occupied a shop in a bustling town square. Court documents might refer to the merchant's obligation to pay "the agreed-upon locarium" to the property owner each quarter.

  Here, locarium signifies the regular payment the merchant was required to make for the privilege of occupying and conducting business from the shop, functioning as commercial rent.

• Picture an ancient Roman legal text discussing the lease of a small apartment within an insula (an apartment building). The text might state that the tenant was responsible for paying a monthly "locarium" to the landlord.

  In this context, locarium directly translates to the rent paid by the tenant for the residential use of the apartment, demonstrating its application to housing.