fellowship English · revision 15428

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=c. 1200}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈfɛl.ə(ʊ).ʃɪp/ ''(UK)''; /ˈfɛl.ə.ʃɪp/, /ˈfɛl.oʊ.ʃɪp/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|felaweshipe]], formed from [[m|enm|felawe]] and [[m|enm|-shipe]] (see [[fellow]] and [[-ship]]).^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Companionship: about 1200 (feolahschipe) in Etymonline and the OED;^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) Merriam-Webster dates it to before the 12th century.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A body of companions is from the late 13th century,^(Etymonline) and participation or sharing from before 1240.^(OED 1989) Spiritual communion is from before 1300, as in ''the right hand of fellowship'' (1382, after Galatians).^(OED 1989) The spirit of comradeship or friendliness is from the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) In Middle English it was sometimes a euphemism for sexual intercourse, ''fleshly fellowship''.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) A paid position in an English college is from the 1530s,^(Etymonline) and the modern sense of an award for advanced study follows from it.^(AHD) Bartlett (1848) condemned the verb ''to fellowship with'' as a barbarism of American church reports.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1200 – companionship.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * late 13th century – a body of companions.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1382 – the right hand of fellowship.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1530s – a college fellowship.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Friendly association with people who share one's interests; [[companionship]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A group or society of people with shared interests or beliefs.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A paid post or award for advanced study or research at a university.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Christian communion and mutual trust.^(Collins 2023)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[disfellowship]]

+ * [[good-fellowship]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[fellow]]

+ * [[-ship]]

+ * [[companionship]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In Lincolnshire dialect fellowship meant friendly conversation (''we had a little fellowship together'').^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}