Bursary

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈbɝsɚi/

Definitions

1. A type of financial support issued to learners to help alleviate their educational expenses
2. An amount of money granted to a student to support their educational costs
3. A sum provided to assist a learner with tuition or related school fees

Etymology: "Bursary" comes from Medieval Latin "bursaria," a word built on "bursarius," meaning a keeper of a purse or treasury. The Latin root is "bursa," meaning purse or money bag, which also gave English the word "purse" through a different route. In the medieval universities and religious houses where the term took shape, the bursar was the official who held the common funds and paid out the expenses, so a bursary was originally the money or the office associated with that financial role. Over time the meaning narrowed from the store of funds itself to a sum handed to an individual. A bursary today is a grant that a student receives, usually to help meet tuition, living costs or other education expenses, rather than a loan that must be repaid. The shift from the treasurer's purse to the student's allowance preserves the core idea of money held and dispensed for a specific purpose.

Synonyms: scholarship, grant, fellowship