noun
old home; former dwelling; old nest
Literary or poetic term for a place where one used to live, including a former home or an animal's old nest. Rare in everyday conversation; more common words are 昔の家 or 古巣.
彼は旧棲を訪ねて、昔の思い出に浸った。
He visited his old home and was lost in memories of the past.
ツバメが去年の旧棲に戻ってきた。
The swallows returned to their old nest from last year.
Compound of 旧 (former, old) and 棲 (dwelling, habitat). The reading きゅうせい follows standard on'yomi. The variant 旧栖 uses a different character for 'dwelling' with the same reading. The word is not commonly used in modern Japanese.