Royalty - Encyclopedia

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES

ROYALTY (0. Fr. realte, reialte, royaulte, from Med. Lat. regalitas, the substantive of regalis, of or belonging to a king, rex), kingly state or personality, hence a royal person, or number of persons of royal birth collectively, a member of a royal family. More particularly "royalty" is used of the rights and attributes of a sovereign, and especially of dues paid to the crown, which belong to the sovereign jure coronae, such as dues from gold and silver mines, waifs, estrays, &c. The term is usually applied to the payment made by a publisher to an author on every copy of his book sold; to the payment made to a patentee on each article manufactured under his patent by a licensee (see Patents), and to the payment made to the owner of minerals for the right of working, paid on the ton or other weight raised.