asylum

n. shelter, refuge; hospital for the mentally ill

Asylum may refer:Psychiatric hospital, once known as an insane asylum, is a hospital specializing in the treatment of persons with mental illnessRight of asylum, also known as Political asylumAsylum seeker, also known as RefugeeDestitute Asylum, an institution built in the 1850s in Adelaide, Australia for isolating cases of extreme povertyOrphan asylum, an institution dedicated to caring for orphansThe Asylum, a film studioAsylum, youth group in CCC Centrewest, Cnr Egerton & Silverwater Rds Silverwater NSW
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Noun
1. a shelter from danger or hardship
(synonym) refuge, sanctuary
(hypernym) shelter
(hyponym) harbor, harbour
2. a hospital for mentally incompetent or unbalanced person
(synonym) mental hospital, psychiatric hospital, mental institution, institution, mental home, insane asylum
(hypernym) hospital, infirmary
(hyponym) Bedlam, booby hatch, crazy house, cuckoo's nest, funny farm, funny house, loony bin, madhouse, nut house, nuthouse, sanatorium, snake pit

(n.)
Any place of retreat and security.
  

(n.)
An institution for the protection or relief of some class of destitute, unfortunate, or afflicted persons; as, an asylum for the aged, for the blind, or for the insane; a lunatic asylum; an orphan asylum.
  

(n.)
A sanctuary or place of refuge and protection, where criminals and debtors found shelter, and from which they could not be forcibly taken without sacrilege.
  

Asylum is a form of protection given by a State on its territory based on the principle of ‘non-refoulement’ and internationally or nationally recognised refugee rights. It is granted to a person who is unable to seek protection in its country of citizenship and/or residence in particular for fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. (See asylum)

Adopted in 1990 and entering into force in 1997, the convention establishes a series of criteria allocating responsibility for examining an asylum application to the Member State that permitted the applicant to enter or reside in the EU. (See Asylum: Standards for asylum procedures, Which Member State is responsible)