vestry

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈvɛstɹi/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English vestrie, earlier westre,^[2][3][4] probably from Anglo-French *vesterie, an alteration of Old French vestiarie (“room for vestments”),^[2][3][5][4] from Latin vestiārium (“wardrobe”),^[2][3][5][4] a noun use of vestiārius “of clothes”, from vestis “garment”.^[3][5][4] The earlier English form was vestiarie (c. 1200).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A room in a church, usually near the chancel, in which the vestments and sacred vessels are kept and the clergy robe (1388).^[6][3][5]

Semantic evolution

The vestry was often used for parish business and local government,^[5] so in England the word came to mean a meeting of the parishioners (1589) and then the body of parishioners acting as a parish council (before 1672).^[6][5] The vestryman (1610s) was a member of such a board.^[5] In the Episcopal Church a vestry is a committee elected to manage a church's temporal affairs (1891).^[6][2][4] Non-liturgical churches kept the word for a room used for Sunday school or prayer meetings.^[5][2]

Timeline

• c. 1200 – vestiarie.^[5]
• 1388 – westre, a robing room in a church.^[6][3]
• 1589 – a meeting of parishioners.^[6]
• 1610s – vestryman.^[5]
• before 1672 – a parish board.^[6]
• 1891 – an elected church committee.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A room in or attached to a church where the clergy put on their vestments and where these and sacred objects are kept; a sacristy.
2. A room in a church used for meetings, classes and prayer.
3. In the Episcopal Church, a committee elected to manage the temporal affairs of a parish.
4. In the Church of England, a meeting of parishioners, or of their representatives, on parish business.

Word family

• vestral
• vestrywoman
• vestryman

Related words

• vestibule
• vesture
• vestment
• vest

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press