Abbots

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈæb.əts/

Definitions

1. A member of a religious community who is the head and leader of an abbey or monastery
2. A person responsible for overseeing the spiritual and administrative affairs of a monastic community
3. The title given to a male monk who holds a position of authority in a religious order and guides other monks

Etymology: The plural of "abbot" inherits a word that began as a family term. In Aramaic, "abba" was the everyday word for "father," and it passed into Ancient Greek as "abbas" before Latin took it as "abbas," meaning "father" in the same affectionate, familiar sense. Early Christian communities in the Eastern Mediterranean used it for their senior monks, so that a leader was addressed as a father to his brothers. The word then travelled north through Old English as "abbat" and "abbod" and settled into Middle English as "abbot." Its doublets show how far the same root spread: "abba" keeps the intimate Aramaic form, "abbé" went through French to name a priest, and "bwana" reached English through Swahili, carrying the sense of "master" or "sir."

Synonyms: abbey heads, monks