What are the origins of the term ‘freelance’?

Answer: The term began as a description for mercenary knights who supplied their own weapons free from house or national ties. It first occurred relatively late however, in the 1820 novel ‘Ivanhoe’ by Walter Scott (1771-1832).

Source: Mercenaries in British and American Literature, 1790-1830 by Erik Simpson

More at: History

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