n.
- a small building or room used for Christian worship in an institution or private house.
▸a part of a large church or cathedral with its own altar and dedication.
▸Brit. a place of worship for Nonconformist congregations.
- Brit. the members or branch of a print or newspaper trade union at a particular place of work.
History
The words chapel and cape are closely linked, both deriving from Latin cappa ‘covering for the head; cap or cape’. The first sanctuary to be called a chapel was in 6th-century France; it was named after the cape of St Martin preserved within it, highly valued as a sacred relic by the Frankish kings. The Latin word cappella, ‘little cape’, was applied to the sanctuary itself, and eventually to any holy oratory or sanctuary, entering English in the 13th century (via Old French chapele) in the forms chapele and chapel. The word chaplain comes from Latin cappellanus, that is, an attendant charged with guarding the cape.
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