guild
- guild
guild early 13c.,
yilde (spelling later influenced by
O.N. gildi "
guild, brotherhood"), a semantic fusion of
O.E. gegyld "
guild" and
gild, gyld "
payment, tribute, compensation," from
P.Gmc. *gelth- "
pay" (
Cf. O.Fris. geld "
money,"
O.S. geld "
payment, sacrifice, reward,"
O.H.G. gelt "
payment, tribute;" see
YIELD (
Cf. yield) (
v.)).
The connecting sense is of a tribute or payment to join a protective or trade society. But some see the root in its alternative sense of "sacrifice," as if in worship, and see the word as meaning a combination for religious purposes, either Christian or pagan. The Anglo-Saxon guilds had a strong religious component; they were burial societies that paid for masses for the souls of deceased members as well as paying fines in cases of justified crime. The continental custom of guilds of merchants arrived after the Conquest, with incorporated societies of merchants in each town or city holding exclusive rights of doing business there. In many cases they became the governing body of a town (Cf. Guildhall, which came to be the London city hall). Trade guilds arose 14c., as craftsmen united to protect their common interest.
Etymology dictionary.
2014.
:
Look at other dictionaries:
guild — guild; guild·hall; guild·ite; guild·ry; guild·ship; … English syllables
Guild — Guild, n. [OE. gilds, AS. gild, gield, geld, tribute, a society or company where payment was made for its charge and support, fr. AS. gildan, gieldan, to pay. See {Yield}, v. t.] 1. An association of men belonging to the same class, or engaged in … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
guild — [gıld] n [Date: 1300 1400; : Old Norse; Origin: gildi payment, guild ] an organization of people who do the same job or have the same interests ▪ the Women s Guild … Dictionary of contemporary English
guild — [gild] n. [ME gild, blend of ON gildi, guild, guild feast & OE gyld, association (of paying members), akin to OHG gelt, OFris ield, all < base seen in OE gieldan, to pay: see YIELD] 1. in medieval times, a union of men in the same craft or… … English World dictionary
guild — index association (alliance), company (enterprise), confederacy (compact), cooperative, institute … Law dictionary
Guild — Guild, Theatre … Enciclopedia Universal
guild — [ gıld ] noun count an organization of people who all have the same job, goals, or interests … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
guild — see gild … Modern English usage
guild — [n] association, fellowship club, company, corporation, federation, group, interest group, league, lodge, order, organization, profession, society, sodality, trade, union; concepts 381,387 … New thesaurus
guild — ► NOUN 1) a medieval association of craftsmen or merchants. 2) an association of people for a common purpose. ORIGIN Old English, related to YIELD(Cf. ↑yielder) … English terms dictionary
