Definition of
Viscount
- (noun, person) (in various countries) a son or younger brother or a count
- (noun, person) a British peer who ranks below an earl and above a baron
via WordNet, Princeton University
Origin of the word Viscount
- late 14c., "deputy of a count or earl," from Anglo-Fr. and O.Fr. visconte, from M.L. vicecomes (gen. vicecomitis), from L.L. vice- "deputy" (see vice-) + L. comes "member of an imperial court, nobleman" (see count (n.)). As a rank in British peerage, first recorded 1440, when John, Baron Beaumont, was made one by Henry VI. more
via Online Etymology Dictionary, ©2001 Douglas Harper