Talk:Briefadel

1836 usage of term
As this is bound to be asked for sooner or later: For the record, Erik Gustaf Geijer used the term brevadel on page 17 of the third volume of his Svenska folkets historia (1836), where it is spelled bref-adel in line with the orthographic convention of the time. Gabbe (talk) 10:51, 5 August 2013 (UTC)

Paper baron
I've found an entry in a 1905 Swedish-English dictionary, which offers the Swedish word brevadel (together with pappersadel) as one of the translations for the English term "paper-baron". It also adds the parenthetical explanation obesuten adel ("landless nobility"). This contrasts with this English dictionary, which defines "paper-baron" as "one who holds a title which is not hereditary, or holds it by courtesy, as a life peer, a law judge, etc.". I suspect that the Swedish-English dictionary is merely mistaken, or at least is using the term brevadel in a uncommon sense. Gabbe (talk) 07:23, 3 July 2017 (UTC)