[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

hanse \hanse\, n. g. hanse, or f. hanse from german, ohg. 
   goth. hansa; akin to as. h=os band, troop.
   an association; a league or confederacy.
   1913 webster

   hanse towns hist., certain commercial cities in germany
      which associated themselves for the protection and
      enlarging of their commerce. the confederacy, called also
      hansa and hanseatic league, held its first diet in
      1260, and was maintained for nearly four hundred years. at
      one time the league comprised eighty-five cities. its
      remnants, l"ubeck, hamburg, and bremen, are free
      cities, and are still frequently called hanse towns.
      1913 webster
see also:
hanse towns hansa hanseatic league free cities 

[2] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

hansa \han"sa\ ha^n"s.a, n.
   see 2d hanse.
   1913 webster
see also:
hanse 

Hansa >> H Words
Hansa, definition of term: Hansa
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