minstrel

English

Etymology

Middle English menestrel, from Old French menestral (“entertainer, servant, official”) from Latin ministeriālis (“servant”), from ministerium (“service”), from minister (“servant”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɪnstɹəl/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

minstrel (plural minstrels)

1. (historical) A medieval traveling entertainer who would sing and recite poetry, often to his own musical accompaniment.
2. (US) One of a troupe of entertainers who wore black makeup (blackface) to present a so-called minstrel show, being a variety show of song, dance and banjo music.

Quotations

• 1885 — Gilbert & Sullivan, The Mikado

  A wandering minstrel I —

  A thing of shreds and patches,

  Of ballads, songs and snatches,

Synonyms

• (traveling musical entertainer): bard, folk singer, troubadour

Translations

medieval traveling entertainer

• Bourguignon: ménétrei
• Catalan: joglar (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 吟遊詩人／吟游诗人 (yínyóushīrén), 吟游诗人 (yínyóu shīrén)

• Czech: minstrel m
• Dutch: speelman (nl) m, minstreel (nl) m
• Finnish: minstreli, kiertelevä laulaja
• French: ménestrel (fr) m, ménétrier (fr) m
• Galician: xogral m, xograr (gl) m, segrel m
• Georgian: მენესტრელი (ka) (menesṭreli)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: Spielmann m, Troubadour (de) m, Minnesänger (de) m
• Italian: menestrello (it) m
• Japanese: 吟遊詩人 (ぎんゆうしじん, gin'yū shijin)
• Portuguese: menestrel (pt) m, jogral (pt) m
• Romanian: menestrel (ro) m
• Russian: менестре́ль (ru) m (menestrélʹ)
• Spanish: juglar (es) m
• Walloon: mestré (wa) m

See also

• vaudeville