Computists

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person skilled in calculating the dates of feasts and the calendar, especially in medieval church reckoning
2. Someone who works out calendar dates and astronomical cycles through careful arithmetic, often for religious purposes
3. One who reckons time and the calendar by mathematical methods, particularly the timing of church festivals

Etymology: "Computists" is the plural of "computist," a noun for someone who calculates calendar dates, such as the date of Easter or the timing of the moon's phases. The word is built from "compute," which comes from Latin "computare," meaning to reckon or count together, with the suffix "-ist," which marks a person who practises or specialises in something. A computist, in other words, is literally a practitioner of computation, and the term was applied to the medieval specialists who worked out the church calendar.

Synonyms: calculator, computer