Faith & RitualGreek → English
Clergy
/ˈklɜːrdʒi/noun
The body of people ordained for religious duties.
The Greek roots
κλῆρος
klêros
lot, allotted portion
Literally: “those of the allotted portion”
Follow a root:κλῆρος1 word
The story of the word
Κλῆρος is a lot, the pebble or shard drawn to decide something, and then the share it wins. Acts describes the apostles casting lots to replace Judas, and κληρικός came to mean those chosen by lot or those who are God's own portion. Clerk is the same word: for centuries only churchmen could write, so the church's term for itself became the word for anyone keeping accounts, and the two senses split apart in English.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Late Latin → Old French → English
- First recorded
- 13th century
The same roots elsewhere
Other languages reached for exactly the same Greek pieces.
Same family
clerkclericclerical
In a sentence
Local clergy were the only people with keys to the hall.