Colony \Col"o*ny\, n.; pl. Colonies. [L. colonia, fr. colonus
farmer, fr. colere to cultivate, dwell: cf. F. colonie. Cf.
Culture.]
1. A company of people transplanted from their mother country
to a remote province or country, and remaining subject to
the jurisdiction of the parent state; as, the British
colonies in America.
The first settlers of New England were the best of
Englishmen, well educated, devout Christians, and
zealous lovers of liberty. There was never a colony
formed of better materials. --Ames.
2. The district or country colonized; a settlement.
3. A company of persons from the same country sojourning in a
foreign city or land; as, the American colony in Paris.
4. (Nat. Hist.) A number of animals or plants living or
growing together, beyond their usual range.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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