Duennas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Female chaperones or governesses responsible for supervising and protecting young women, especially in historical or traditional settings
2. Women who accompany and watch over young ladies to ensure proper conduct, often acting as guardians or attendants in social environments
3. Female guardians employed to oversee the behavior and appearance of young women, typically accompanying them in public or formal situations to maintain decorum

Etymology: "Duennas" is the plural of "duenna," an older term for a woman employed to chaperone a young unmarried woman, especially in Spain and Portugal. The singular comes from Old Spanish "duenna" or "dueña," which descends from Vulgar Latin "donna," itself from Latin "domina," meaning "lady" or "mistress of a household." That makes it a close relative of the English word "dame," which took a different route into the language through Old French. The chain of meaning is a neat one. A "domina" was a lady of standing, and in Spanish the title narrowed to a senior woman who looked after the female members of a household, guarding their reputations. The word for a lady of rank therefore ended up naming the watchful older woman set to guard the young women beneath her roof.

Synonyms: chaperones, companions, governesses