vartabedn.
/ˈvɑːtəbɛd/ A member of an order of clergy in the Armenian church (see quot. 1847).
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society > faith > church government > member of the clergy > other clergy > [noun] > Armenian
vartabed1718
1718 J. Ozell tr. J. Pitton de Tournefort Voy. Levant II. viii. 303 These Vertabiets, who make such a noise among the Armenians, are not in reality great Doctors.
1841 L. Coleman tr. J. C. W. Augusti Antiq. Christian Church xxiii. 470 The vartabeds live not among the people, but in convents.
1847 J. Wilson Lands of Bible II. 482 The monkish clergy are denominated Vartabads or Doctors, and it is their peculiar office to teach and preach.
1875 Encycl. Brit. II. 549/2 The vartabed, or doctor of theology..has frequently charge of a diocese, with episcopal functions.
1923 Blackwood's Mag. Aug. 252/1 The Patriarch and an Armenian vartabed..are pushed inside.
1957 F. L. Cross Oxf. Dict. Christian Church 87/1 Bishops..are usually chosen from among the vardapets.
1964 P. F. Anson Bishops at Large i. 37 Almost any alien, provided that he..calls himself an abuna,..pappas, rasophor, starets, synkellos,..vartapet..invariably finds a warm welcome in England.
1982 Encycl. Brit. Macropædia VI. 140 Another class of priests is represented by the vartabeds, or doctors, who must remain unmarried.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1933; most recently modified version published online September 2019).
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