Definition of "cottier" [cot•ti•er]

• Alternative form of cotter. (one performing labour in exchange for the right to live in a cottage) (noun)

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• "Nonetheless, the population explosion within the cottier and laboring class increased the aggregate dependence on the potato steadily and dramatically after the turn of the nineteenth century."
• "Audio Sample In addition, it offers some alternative motivations: the Irish rebel running from the law; the Irish Catholic fleeing from religious persecution; the Irish cottier escaping the Great Famine."
• "Subdivision and subletting of land were increasingly undermining the viability of holdings and eventually came under prohibition altogether, leaving few options for surplus offspring in small-holder or cottier families."