Birthrights

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The inherent privileges or entitlements passed down from one generation to another regarding family heritage and social standing
2. Legal or traditional rights that an individual is entitled to at birth, often linked to ancestry or familial wealth
3. Rights bestowed on individuals by virtue of their birth status, encompassing aspects of property, titles, or social status within a family or society

Etymology: The plural "birthrights" simply pluralizes "birthright," which is a compound of "birth" and "right," the two words joined as they are, with the sense of a right held from the moment of one's birth. The pairing is found across the Germanic languages: Dutch "geboorterecht," German "Geburtsrecht," and West Frisian "berterjocht" all follow the same pattern, and Icelandic has its own version, "frumburðarréttur," built around the idea of being the firstborn. That Icelandic term hints at the most concrete part of the word's history. Much of what a birthright meant in practice was tied to the eldest child, who inherited the family's property and title, so the abstract idea of a right conferred by birth grew out of very real questions of who would inherit. The plural form, used when speaking of several such entitlements at once, follows naturally from that sense of multiple claims passed down through a family.

Synonyms: inheritance, entitlements, heritage, privileges, rights