“Bailiwick” has two meanings: an area supervised by a bailiff or an area of knowledge. The term comes from the French “bailie” and “wik”, meaning “village”. Some modern bailiwicks still exist, but most duties have been dissolved.
The term “bailiwick” has two meanings. The older first sense means an area supervised by a bailiff, a type of legal officer whose role varies by nation. In the second sense, the term is used to describe an area of knowledge or skill, which is why one hears statements such as “gardening is indeed Susan’s bailiff, not mine”. A few modern bailiwicks still exist, particularly in the Channel Islands of the United Kingdom.
The term comes from the French bailie, a court official charged with overseeing an administrative district known as a bailliage or sénéchal, depending on the region. These officials were to oversee the judicial system, collect taxes, and perform other administrative duties. In England the concept of wet nurses was adopted, and these men became known as bailiffs; a number of Crown officials were called bailiffs, including sheriffs, tax collectors, and mayors.
In the 1460s, people referred to the area under the supervision of a bailiff as a bailiwick, forming a compound from the words “bailiff” and “wik”, meaning “village”. Incidentally, “wik” is also the root of words like Greenwich or “green village”. These administrative districts were usually small, to allow the bailiff to keep an eye on the activities of all citizens. The bailiff ensured that the authority of the Crown was upheld in his bailiwick, often with the assistance of an assortment of officials performing various duties.
In modern times, some people refer to a sheriff’s administrative area as a bailiwick, and in some regions a bailiff still has authority over a bailiwick. In most regions, however, the bailiff’s duties have been dissolved and are now overseen by a variety of officials in a variety of districts. For example, taxes may be collected on a national basis, while law enforcement matters are handled by the police force.
In the second sense, a bailiwick can be an area of experience, influence, expertise, interest, or study. The term generally implies a broad and comprehensive scope, much like that of the bailiffs of yore. In other words, if you casually play crossword puzzles, you wouldn’t say that crossword puzzles were your bailiwick, but if you faithfully completed The New York Times Crossword every day and studied the history and construction of crossword puzzles, you could fairly argue that crossword puzzles were indeed the your bailiwick.
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