Parvise
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Parvis
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Look up parvis in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
A parvis or parvise is the open space in front of and around a cathedral or church,[1] especially when surrounded by either colonnades or porticoes, as at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.[2] It is thus a church-specific type of forecourt, front yard or apron.
Etymology
The term derives via Old French from the Latin paradisus meaning "paradise".[3] This in turn came via Ancient Greek from the Indo-European Aryan languages of ancient Iran, where it meant a walled enclosure or garden precinct with heavenly flowers planted by the Clercs (Clerics).[citation needed]
Parvis of St Paul's Cathedral
In London in the
on the same site.- ^ that is, v (the letter "v" in its modern shape did not appear in the repertoire of most Middle English scribes
Late English use
In
Frank Cross and Elizabeth Livingstone all say this usage is wrong. The Oxford English Dictionary records this use as being "historical", and current in the middle of the 19th century.[3] It may stem from an earlier misuse in F. Blomefield's book Norfolk, published in 1744.[2]
Examples of English parvises
-
The Parvise at Castle Ashby, Northamptonshire -
Bletchingley Church Parvise, Surrey -
-
The Parvise at Dodford Parish Church, Northamptonshire -
The Parvise atMartham Parish Church, Norfolk
.JPG)
See also
References
- ^ a b Fleming, Honour & Pevsner 1980, p. 238.
- ^ a b Cross & Livingstone 1997, p. 1224.
- ^ a b Brown 1993, p. 2112.
- ^ Chaucer, verse 8396.
Sources
- Brown, Lesley, ed. (1993) [1933]. The New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles. Vol. II (3rd ed.). Oxford: ISBN 0-19-861134-X.
- Chaucer, Geoffrey. "The Clerkes Tale". The Canterbury Tales. verse 8396.
- ISBN 0-19-211655-X.
- ISBN 0-14-051013-3.
Further reading
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Parvises.
- Hoad, TF, ed. (1996). The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. Oxford University Press.
- Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2005). Oxford Dictionary of English (2nd, revised ed.). Oxford University Press.