English

Noun

heirloom ‎(plural heirlooms)

1. A valued possession that has been passed down through the generations.
2. A crop variety that has been passed down through generations of farmers by seed saving and cultivation.
   • 2009 August 19, Melissa Clark, “Plums Rescue a Seasonal Favorite”, in New York Times:

     My last trip to the market barely yielded enough unmealy heirlooms for a couple of salads.

   • 2016 September 26, Charles Quest-Ritson, “The Dutch garden where tulip bulbs live forever: Hortus Bulborum, a volunteer-run Dutch garden, is dedicated to conserving historic varieties before they vanish for good [print version: Inspired by a living bulb archive, 27 September 2014, p. G5]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Gardening):

     At Hortus Bulborum you will find heirloom narcissi that date back at least to the 15th century and famous old tulips like 'Duc van Tol' (1595) and its sports.

Synonyms

• (valued possession passed down through the generations): patrimony

Translations

See also

• heirloom on Wikipedia.Wikipedia