Alsatia
/alˈseɪʃə/noun
1Originally cant. The precinct of Whitefriars in London, where debtors and criminals were immune from arrest. Now historical.
- Whitefriars was originally the site of a medieval monastery possessing right of sanctuary; this right remained after the dissolution of the monastery until it was abolished by Act of Parliament in 1697..
2 Allusively. A sanctuary for criminals; a lawless place.
Origin
Late 17th century. From Alsatia, †Alsacia (German Elsass, French Alsace), former name in English of an area of Europe bordering Germany and Switzerland and now forming part of France from post-classical Latin Alsatia, a borrowing of the German name for the region, itself of uncertain origin.