suffragan
English
[edit]
Etymology
[edit]From Anglo-Norman, Old French suffragam, from (the stem of) Latin suffrāgium (“suffrage”).
Pronunciation
[edit]Noun
[edit]suffragan (plural suffragans)
- A bishop seen in relation to his archbishop or metropolitan province (which may summon him for support, to attend synods etc.).
- 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “xiiij”, in Le Morte Darthur, book XII:
- Now take your hors said sir Tristram And as ye say / soo hit shal be / and alle thyn euylle wil god forgyue it yow and I doo / And here within this myle is the suffrecan of Carleil that shalle gyue yow the sacrament of baptym
- “Now take your horse,” said Sir Tristram, “And as you say, so it shall be and God will forgive you all your evil and I do, too. And less than a mile from here is the suffragan [bishop] of Carlisle who shall give you the sacrament of baptism.“
- An auxiliary bishop.
- 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter III, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
- One saint's day in mid-term a certain newly appointed suffragan-bishop came to the school chapel, and there preached on “The Inner Life.”
- 2015, GR Evans, Edward Hicks: Pacifist Bishop at War:
- A suffragan could share the tasks which were special to bishops; for example, by conducting confirmations.