cathedra

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:

cathedra

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)

The chair or throne of a bishop.
The rank of bishop.
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

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

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
- Venetian: 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
- → Venetian: 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