'Tenure' is Latin for 'a holding' — from 'tenere.' Feudal land-holding became permanent academic appointment.
The conditions under which something is held or occupied; the holding of an office or position; in academia, a permanent appointment granted after a probationary period.
From Old French 'tenure' meaning 'a holding, a possession,' from Vulgar Latin 'tenitura' (a holding), from Latin 'tenere' (to hold, to keep, to possess). Like 'tenant,' 'tenure' is a direct derivation from 'tenere' and entered English as a legal term of feudal property law. The original sense referred to the conditions and terms under which land was held from a lord. The academic sense — a permanent position
Academic tenure — perhaps the most coveted meaning of the word today — was formalized in the United States by the 1940 Statement of Principles on Academic Freedom and Tenure, jointly issued by the American Association of University Professors and the Association of American Colleges. The concept was designed to protect scholars from being fired for holding unpopular ideas. The word 'tenure' was chosen precisely because of its feudal connotations of secure, long-term holding: a tenured professor 'holds' their position