hierarch
noun
Forms hierarchs
- noun (religion) One who has high and controlling authority in sacred things; the chief of a sacred order.
- noun (Eastern Orthodoxy) A title of bishops in their role as ordinaries (arbiters of canon law) over their respective dioceses.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Medieval Latin hierarcha, from Ancient Greek ἱεράρχης (hierárkhēs) Derived from ἱερός (hierós, “holy”) + -άρχης (-árkhēs, “ruler”, “leader”).
ἱερός from Proto-Hellenic *iherós, from Proto-Indo-European *ish₁ros. There are a number of candidate cognates with this word. Compare Sanskrit इषिर (iṣira, “vigorous, fresh, blooming”) and Oscan 𐌀𐌉𐌔𐌖𐌔𐌉𐌔 (aisusis).
Webster’s 1913
- noun One who has high and controlling authority in sacred things; the chief of a sacred order; as, princely hierarchs. Milton.
Etymology [LL. hierarcha, Gr. ishiras vigorous, fresh, blooming) + hiérarque.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “hierarch”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details