Meaning
What does My Liege mean?
My liege is an old-fashioned expression, used to address a royalty or somebody who is your superior.
Coming from the French language, the term “liege” was mostly used during the feudal ages by peasants or vassals to refer to their overlords.
In our time, it is an expression that is rarely used in its serious, literal meaning.
Addressing someone as my liege usually expresses sarcasm.
People often utilize this term on those who demand recognition and authority, but don’t have respect to back it up.
Origin
What's the origin of My Liege?
The word “liege” comes from the Middle English and Old French languages, which were prominent languages during the Middle Ages.
In literal translation, the word means “a free and independent person; a sovereign”.
The term my liege was first used in 14th century England.
During those times, the country was working under a feudal system.
That meant that everyone was ruled by a superior except for the emperor.
When somebody desired to address their superior, my liege would be one of the appropriate expressions to use.
Spread & Usage
How did My Liege spread?
Today, feudal systems have completely disappeared from modern society.
This made my liege an unuseful term, but people still use it, but mostly for fun.
As a humorous expression, it started to be used in the 20th century.
The term sometimes appears in pop-culture as well.
A song titled My Liege (Black Acre) was released by artist Commodo in 2016, for example.