Dowager

A dowager is a widow who holds a title or property, or dower, derived from her deceased husband. As an adjective, "Dowager" usually appears in association with monarchical and aristocratic titles.

In loose popular usage, dowager as a stand-alone noun may refer to any elderly widow, especially one who is wealthy or behaves with dignity.

Use in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, the widow of a peer may continue to use the style she had during her husband's lifetime, e.g. "Countess of Loamshire", provided that his successor, if any, has no wife to bear the plain title. Otherwise she more properly prefixes either her forename or the word Dowager, e.g. "Jane, Countess of Loamshire" or "Dowager Countess of Loamshire". (In any case she would continue to be called "Lady Loamshire".)

Monarchical dowagers

Queen Dowager is used in the United Kingdom and several other countries.

In reference to the fallen Russian imperial family and the Monarchy of China, the term "Dowager Empress" was used in English to describe the wife of a deceased emperor.

Examples

Historical and current

• Following the annulment of her marriage to King Henry VIII of England, Katherine of Aragon was styled either "Princess Dowager of Wales" or "Dowager Princess of Wales" in consequence of her previous marriage (1501) to Henry's older brother, Arthur, Prince of Wales (died 1502).
• Cixi was referred to as the Empress Dowager of China.
• Following the adoption of same-sex marriage in Spain, Luisa Isabel Álvarez de Toledo, 21st Duchess of Medina Sidonia married on her deathbed her longtime secretary Liliana Dahlgren, leaving her as the Dowager Duchess of Medina Sidonia.
• Helen E. Hokinson, a cartoonist for the The New Yorker, was best known for her sketches of American dowagers from the 1920s though the 1940s.
• Following the death of Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer in 1992, his widow, Raine McCorquodale, ceased to use the style Countess Spencer, becoming Raine, Dowager Countess Spencer. Her stepdaughter-in-law, Victoria, became Countess Spencer.

In media and entertainment

• In the 1997 movie Anastasia, the term is said many times to address the Dowager Empress Marie, Anastasia's grandmother.
• In The Princess Diaries books, Mia's grandmother is the Dowager Princess of Genovia, although she is simply known as "the Queen" in the films.
• In the video game Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn for the Nintendo Wii, one can see Ike refer to Lady Almedha as the Dowager Queen of Daein if one can enable the secret conversation regarding Soren in the Epilogue.
• The 2010 television series, Downton Abbey, features Dame Maggie Smith playing the fictional Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham.
• In the 100th episode of the television series, Futurama, a wealthy older woman is seen reading a fictional magazine "Now Dowager."

This biography of a member of a noble house or article about nobility is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Nobility stubs Noble titles Women Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную? Eric (novel) Planet Purple Look at other dictionaries: dowager — [dou′ə jər] n. [OFr douagiere < douage, dowry < douer, to give a dowry < L dotare, to endow < dos: see DOT2] 1. a widow with a title or property derived from her dead husband: often used in combination with the title [queen dowager,… …   English World dictionary Dowager — Dow a*ger, n. [OF. douagiere, fr. douage dower. See {Dower}.] 1. (Eng. Law) A widow endowed, or having a jointure; a widow who either enjoys a dower from her deceased husband, or has property of her own brought by her to her husband on marriage,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English dowager — n. A widow who holds the title or property that belonged to her dead husband. The Essential Law Dictionary. Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008 …   Law dictionary dowager — 1520s, from M.Fr. douagere widow with a dower lit. pertaining to a dower, from douage dower, from douer endow, from L. dotare, from dos (gen. dotis) dowry (see DOWRY (Cf. dowry)) …   Etymology dictionary dowager — ► NOUN 1) a widow with a title or property derived from her late husband. 2) informal a dignified elderly woman. ORIGIN Old French douagiere, from douer endow , from Latin dos dowry …   English terms dictionary dowager — dowagerism, n. /dow euh jeuhr/, n. 1. a woman who holds some title or property from her deceased husband, esp. the widow of a king, duke, etc. (often used as an additional title to differentiate her from the wife of the present king, duke, etc.) …   Universalium dowager — [[t]da͟ʊəʤə(r)[/t]] dowagers 1) ADJ: ADJ n, n ADJ You use dowager to refer to the wife of a dead duke, emperor, or other man of high rank. ...the Dowager Countess Spencer... Nobody was allowed to eat in the Empress Dowager s presence. N COUNT… …   English dictionary dowager — UK [ˈdaʊədʒə(r)] / US [ˈdaʊədʒər] noun [countable] Word forms dowager : singular dowager plural dowagers 1) a woman who has a title or property because her dead husband belonged to a high social class 2) informal an impressive older woman,… …   English dictionary dowager — n. 1 a widow with a title or property derived from her late husband (Queen dowager; dowager duchess). 2 colloq. a dignified elderly woman. Etymology: OF douag(i)ere f. douage (as DOWER) …   Useful english dictionary dowager — Synonyms and related words: Eve, Frau, abbess, beldam, chatelaine, crone, dame, daughter of Eve, distaff, domina, donna, femme, first lady, frow, frump, gentlewoman, girl, goodwife, governess, grandam, grande dame, grandmother, granny, great lady …   Moby Thesaurus 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”