“As the categories became indistinct, the more abject varieties of slavery disappeared and in the twelfth century the word ‘villein’ became the general term for unfree peasants. ‘Serf’ did not become a legal term of art, and in so far as it remained in use it did not connote a status lower than that of villein. The merger was to the detriment of the villani, but it ensured that full slavery was not received as part of the common law.” J.H. Baker, An Introduction to English Legal History 532 (3d ed. 1990).
serf
serf. Hist. A person in a condition of feudal servitude, bound to labor at the will of a lord; a villein. • Serfs differed from slaves in that they were bound to the native soil rather than being the absolute property of a master.
