Serfdom, condition in medieval Europe in which a tendency farmer was bound to a hereditary plot of land and to the will of his landlord. The vast majority of serfs in medieval Europe obtained their subsistence by cultivating a plot of land that was owned by a lord.
Some characteristics of agrarian societies were:
• rapid technological advances
• extra food during winter
• less leisure time
• freedom to work different jobs
• depletion of the soil
