Chartulary

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A custodian of religious records and charters who oversees, records, and manages documents related to a religious establishment
2. An individual responsible for the documentation and preservation of records in a religious setting, often pertaining to charters and deeds
3. A person who manages and safeguards important religious documents such as charters and records, ensuring their proper maintenance and accessibility

Etymology: The word is an alternative spelling of "cartulary", and its root lies in the Latin word for paper. Medieval Latin "chartulārium" was a register in which copies of charters, the legal deeds recording grants of land or privilege, were kept together, typically in a monastery or cathedral. The Latin base is "charta", a sheet of papyrus or paper, which also gave English "chart" and "card". The Latin word was borrowed into Middle English as "cartulari", so the register itself gave its name to the English term. Because "chartulary" is only a variant spelling, the meaning stays the same: the book or collection of records. The spelling with "h" preserves the Latin "ch" more visibly, while the spelling without it, "cartulary", is the more common form in modern scholarship.

Synonyms: record keeper, scribe