Traditionally, members of the House of Commons were commoners and members of the House of Lords were peers, although peers whose only titles are in the Peerage of Ireland have been able to stand for election to the House of Commons for centuries. Since the House of Lords Act, 1999, which excluded most hereditary peers from the House of Lords, most hereditary peers can now stand for election to the House of Commons, even though they are not commoners. For example, the 3rd Viscount Thurso and the 3rd Viscount Hailsham are currently members of the House of Commons.
The term commoner is frequently used to refer to those not of royal blood, but this usage is incorrect.
In England and Wales, a common (or commonland) is a piece of land over which other people—often neighbouring landowners—could exercise one of a number of traditional rights, such as allowing their cattle to graze upon it.
While commons are generally seen as a system opposed to private property, they have been combined in the idea of commonproperty, which are resources owned equally by every member of the community, even though the community recognises that only a limited number of members may use the resource at any given time.
Commons are a subset of public goods; specifically meaning a public good which is not infinite.
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