abbess or prioress an office within the convent of the house’s superior which was usually given to a nun of considerable social standing. (p. 319)






Eucharist name given to the central ceremony of Christian worship as well as to the bread and wince consecrated by the priest and consumed by believers. (p. 309)






joust a competition between two knights on horseback. (p. 315)






lay brothers peasants who did the agricultural labor for the monastery since choir monks were aristocrats and therefore could not till the land themselves. (p. 321)






manors the estates that most European peasants, free or unfree, lived on. (p. 300)

manumission the ability of serfs to buy their freedom through a third party. (p. 298)

ministerials unfree knights who fought as warriors or served as stewards who managed nobles estates or households. (p. 312)






nobility a small fraction of the total population that strongly influenced all aspects of medieval culture - political, economic, religious, educational and artistic. (p. 311)






oblates superfluous children were given to monasteries as "offerings" or permanent gifts. (p. 313)






popolani non-nobles, non-aristocrats, in reference to the type of people who became saints in Italy and the Mediterranean. (p. 308)






relics items belonging to or coming from saints such as bones, articles of clothing, the saint’s tears, saliva even dust from the saint’s tomb - they often belonged to a local saint to whom the church itself was dedicated. (p. 307)

rustics peasants who were often thought of as coarse and dirty due to their proximity to the earth, and they were often associated with excrement as they worked with manure to fertilize the fields. (p. 312)






sacrament an outward and visible sign instituted by Christ .(p. 308)

saints once lived on earth and thus could well understand human problems, they could be helpful intercessors with Christ and God the Father, they were believed to possess supernatural powers that enabled them to perform miracles. (p. 307)






tournament an arena for knights to compete on horseback giving them valuable experience in pitched battle. (p. 315)






villeins "inhabitants of small villages" or English serfs. (p. 298)