Outremer

See also: outremer and outre-mer

English

Etymology

From French outre-mer (“beyond the sea”), from outre (“beyond”) and mer (“sea”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈuːtɹəmɛː/

Proper noun

Outremer

1. (historical, chiefly of France) The French Crusader States established in the Middle East after the First Crusade.
   • 1997: After the capture of Jerusalem, the genuine pilgrims had begun to trickle home; the Franks who remained in Outremer (as the Crusader lands in the Middle East had come to be called) were military adventurers, now out for what they could get. — John Julius Norwich, A Short History of Byzantium (Penguin 1998, p. 260)
   • 2011, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Jerusalem: The Biography – A History of the Middle East, page 269:

     Life for ordinary barons in Outremer Jerusalem was probably better than for kings in Europe, where even potentates wore unlaundered wool and lived in bare-stone draughty keeps with rough furniture.