Rubruquis

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The 13th-century Flemish Franciscan missionary who journeyed to the Mongol court ; the travel narrative he wrote describing his experiences in Asia
2. A medieval Flemish friar sent east by King Louis IX to visit the Mongols ; the detailed record of that mission and the lands he observed
3. William of Rubruck, the Franciscan traveler of Flanders ; the written report of his expedition to the Great Khan's court in Karakorum

Etymology: "Rubruquis" is the Latinized name of William of Rubruck (Guillaume de Rubrouck), a Flemish Franciscan friar who was sent by King Louis IX of France on a mission to the Mongol court around 1253 to 1255. His account of the journey, written as a long letter to the king, is one of the most detailed Western descriptions of the Mongol Empire from the period, and it is the reason his name survives. Historians of medieval travel still cite the work by the Latin form of his name. The name itself comes from the village of Rubrouck, near Cassel in French Flanders, which was the friar's birthplace. Medieval writers commonly identified a churchman by his home place, so "of Rubrouck" became his usual designation, and the Latin genitive-style form "Rubruquis" was the one that scholars adopted. The English word is therefore a proper name rather than a common noun, and it refers to one particular traveller rather than to a type of person.