information for Domesday began in January 1086.The inquisitors had
to ask the following questions:
How many ploughs are there in the manor ?
- How many mills and fishponds ?
- How many freemen, villagers and slaves are there in the manor ?
- How much woodland, pasture, meadow ?
-What does each freeman owe in the manor ?
-How much is the manor worth ?
Norman officials checked the answers and the punishments for giving false information were severe. The reeve from a manor and six peasants were questioned for every manor visited.A reeve was a type of farm manager.
The Domesday Book was written in Latin. However,there were some artificial words inserted for native terms that had no equivalent in Latin. The text was highly abbreviated.