Virge

Avirgeorverge(fromLatinvirga) is a type of rod, made ofwood.

Etymology[edit]

Originally it was one or more branches (the French often useverges,the plural of its equivalent, as the normal word for a rod, the rarer singularvergerather indicates aswitch) used as an instrument forcorporal punishment,or as a riding crop. It later became a symbol of civil office, used in ceremonies of swearing fealty (from which the legal termtenant by the vergeis derived). Further deriving from this use is the sense of a measurement, and so boundary or border, of land, or generally a margin of space.^[1]

Modern practice[edit]

In modern times it is best known as the ceremonial staff of the Anglican and Episcopal lay church officers known asvergers(or originallyvirger– the title derives fromvirge), who originally used it as a 'weapon' to make way for the ecclesiastical procession (compare the CatholicSwiss Guard), and occasionally to chastise unrulychoristers.

References[edit]

^One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Verge".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 1021.

External links[edit]

"What is a virge?".vergers.org.FAQ. Vergers Guild of the Episcopal Church.

[EB1911-1] One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Verge".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 1021.

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