Sanbenitos

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of garment traditionally worn during the Spanish Inquisition for penance or public humiliation
2. a distinctive identifier of an individual’s guilt or sin, often displayed prominently
3. a historical relic reflecting the practices of religious and societal judgment in Spain during a specific period

Etymology: The sanbenito was a penitential garment, and its name comes from the habit of the Benedictine monks, whose order was dedicated to Saint Benedict. Spanish "sambenito" is the name the garment took from the way its shape resembled that monastic robe. Those forced to wear it during the Spanish Inquisition, typically people convicted of heresy, were made to display it in public as a mark of disgrace. The word is a plural here, so "sanbenitos" refers to more than one of these garments. The singular form is "sanbenito," and both forms come directly from Spanish.