cathedra

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cathedra (“seat”), from Ancient Greek καθέδρα (kathédra, “chair of a teacher, throne”), from κατά (katá, “down”) + ἕδρα (hédra, “seat”). Doublet of chair and chaise.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kəˈθiːdɹə]

Noun

cathedra (plural cathedrae or cathedras)

1. The chair or throne of a bishop.
2. The rank of bishop.
4. The official chair of some position or office, as of a professor.

Related terms

• ex cathedra

Latin

Etymology

From Ancient Greek καθέδρα (kathédra), from κατά (katá, “down”) + ἕδρα (hédra, “seat”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈka.tʰe.dra/, [ˈkät̪ʰɛd̪rä] or IPA^(key): /kaˈtʰed.ra/, [käˈt̪ʰɛd̪rä]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈka.te.dra/, [ˈkäːt̪ed̪rä] or IPA^(key): /kaˈted.ra/, [käˈt̪ɛd̪rä]

Noun

cathedra f (genitive cathedrae); first declension

1. armchair (having cushions and supports)
2. ceremonial chair (of a teacher, later of a bishop)
3. the office or rank of teacher or bishop
4. pulpit in Church for preaching
5. chair

Declension

First-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	cathedra	cathedrae
Genitive	cathedrae	cathedrārum
Dative	cathedrae	cathedrīs
Accusative	cathedram	cathedrās
Ablative	cathedrā	cathedrīs
Vocative	cathedra	cathedrae

Derived terms

• cathedrālicius
• cathedrālis
• cathedrārius
• cathedrāticum
• cathedrāticus
• cathedrātum
• cathedrātus
• cathedrō

Descendants

• Dalmatian:
  • catraida, katraida, catrieda
• Italo-Romance:
  • Italian: cattedra
• North Italian:
  • Emilian: cadrega, carega
  • Friulian: cjadree, čhadree (alternative orthography)
  • Ladin: cariega
  • Ligurian: carêga, cairega, cariega
  • Lombard: cadrega, cadreja, caréga
    • → Piedmontese: cadrega
  • Piedmontese: careja, carea; carega
    • → Franco-Provençal: careya, carea (Valdôtain)
  • Romansch: chadreiga
  • Venetan: carega
    • → Albanian: karrige
• Gallo-Romance:
  • Old Francoprovençal: cheyri
    • Franco-Provençal: cheyèri
  • Old French: chaiere, caiere (Old Northern French)
    • Lorrain: tchaière
    • Middle French: chaire, chaere
      • French: chaire, chaise
        • → Alemannic German: Scheese
        • → English: chaise
          • ⇒ English: shay (archaic)
        • Louisiana Creole: lashèz, lashèj, shèj, shèz
    • Norman: caire
      • Jersey Norman: tchaîthe
      • Guernesey Norman: tchaire
      • Sark Norman: cheez
    • Picard: caïère, caïèle (Pas-de-Calais)
    • → Middle English: chayer (see there for further descendants)
• Occitano-Romance:
  • Catalan: cadira
  • Occitan:
    • Auvergnat: chadeira, chadira, chiera
    • Gascon: cadièra, carièra, cadèira, cadira, carièira
    • Languedocien: cadièra, cadièira
    • Limousin: chadiera, chaira, chiera, chadeira, chadira
    • Provençal: cadièra
    • Vivaro-Alpine: chiera, cheiera, cheira
• Ibero-Romance:
  • Asturian: cadera
  • Mirandese: cadeira
  • Old Galician-Portuguese: cadeira
    • Galician: cadeira
    • Portuguese: cadeira (see there for further descendants)
  • Spanish: cadera (see there for further descendants)
• Insular Romance:
  • Sardinian: cadira, carida, cadrea, catrea

Borrowings

• Ancient:
  • → Proto-Celtic:
    • Old Irish: cathaír
      • Middle Irish: cathaír
        • Irish: cathaoir
        • Manx: caair
        • Scottish Gaelic: cathair
    • Proto-Brythonic:
      • Cornish: kador
      • Middle Breton: cadoer
        • Breton: kador
      • Welsh: cadair
• Modern:
  • → Basque: katedra
  • → Catalan: càtedra
  • → Czech: katedra
  • → Dalmatian: catraida
  • → Dutch: katheder
  • → English: cathedra
  • → French: cathèdre
  • → Friulian: càtidre
  • → Galician: cátedra
  • → Macedonian: катедра (katedra)
  • → Occitan: catedra
  • → Piedmontese: càtedra
  • → Polish: katedra
  • → Portuguese: cátedra
  • → Romanian: catedră
  • → Serbo-Croatian: катедра, katedra
  • → Spanish: cátedra
  • → Swedish: kateder
  • → Translingual: Cathedra
  • → Venetan: càtedra

References

• “căthē̆dra”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “cathedra”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• cathedra in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• căthedra in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette, page 275/2.
• “cathedra”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “cathedra”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
• “cathedra” on page 285/3 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (1st ed., 1968–82)
• Niermeyer, Jan Frederik (1976) “cathedra”, in Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden, Boston: E. J. Brill, page 158/1