Xenodocheum

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A place that serves as a temporary refuge for those traveling or visiting in need of lodging
2. An accommodation venue specifically designed to host unfamiliar individuals seeking shelter
3. A location providing short-term shelter and rest for people away from home

Etymology: The Greek compound "xenodokheion" was built from two everyday words: "xenos," meaning both "guest" and "stranger," and "dekhomai," meaning "to receive" or "to accept." Put together, they describe a place where strangers are taken in, which is exactly what an inn was for a traveler far from home. The Greek word is therefore a kind of hospitality in a single term, with the foreigner and the host folded into one idea. The Romans borrowed the Greek compound as "xenodochium," and the form "xenodocheum" is an alternative spelling of that Latin version. Because the word came to English through Latin scholarship rather than everyday speech, it has always sounded learned, a reminder that the old idea of welcoming the stranger was once a formal institution.