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Origin and history of simony

simony(n.)

c. 1200, simonie, "the sin of buying or selling sacred things," from Old French simonie "selling of church offices" (12c.) and directly from Late Latin simonia, from Simon Magus, the Samaritan magician who was rebuked by Peter when he sought to buy the power of conferring the Holy Spirit (Acts viii.18-20). Related: Simonient (adj.) "guilty of simony," late 14c.

also from c. 1200

Entries linking to simony

Simon

masc. proper name, from Latin, from Greek Symeon, from Hebrew Shim'on, literally "hearkening, hearing," from shama "he heard." In English Old Testaments usually printed as Simeon, but in the New Testament almost always as Simon. It also has been confused with the Greek masc. proper name Simōn, which is from simos "snub-nosed." The Simonians were an early Christian sect named for Simon Magus (see simony).

Alliterative Simple Simon "foolish person" is attested from 1730. The nursery rhyme about him is attested from 1841. Earlier he had been the subject of a popular chapbook, "Simple Simon's Misfortunes: Or His Wife Margery's Outrageous Cruelty."

simoniac(n.)

"one guilty of simony," mid-14c., simoniak; see simony + -ac. Simoner (also simonier) "one who practices simony" is attested from c. 1400. Related: Simoniacally.

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    Trends of simony

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

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    early 15c., "sale of ecclesiastical or state offices," from Old French baraterie "deceit, guile, trickery," from barat "malpractice, fraud, deceit, trickery," which is of unknown origin, perhaps from a Celtic source. In marine law, "wrongful conduct by a ship's crew or officer, r
    traffic
    c. 1500, "trade, commerce," from  French trafique (15c.), from Italian traffico (14c.), from trafficare "carry on trade," of uncertain origin, perhaps from a Vulgar Latin *transfricare "to rub across," from Latin trans "across" (see trans-) + fricare "to rub" (see friction),
    Peter
    masc. proper name, 12c., from Old English Petrus (genitive Pet(e)res, dative Pet(e)re), from Latin Petrus, from Greek Petros, literally "stone, rock" (see petrous), a translation of Syriac kefa "stone" (Latinized as Cephas), the nickname Jesus gave to apostle Simon Bar-Jona (Matt
    fiction
    early 15c., ficcioun, "that which is invented or imagined in the mind," from Old French ficcion "dissimulation, ruse; invention, fabrication" (13c.) and directly from Latin fictionem (nominative fictio) "a fashioning or feigning," noun of action from past participle stem of finge
    save
    c. 1200, saven, "to deliver from some danger; rescue from peril, bring to safety," also "prevent the death of;" also "to deliver from sin or its consequences; admit to eternal life; gain salvation," from Old French sauver "keep (safe), protect, redeem," from Late Latin salvare "m
    hygiene
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    will
    Old English *willan, wyllan "to wish, desire; be willing; be used to; be about to" (past tense wolde), from Proto-Germanic *willjan (source also of Old Saxon willian, Old Norse vilja, Old Frisian willa, Dutch willen, Old High German wellan, German wollen, Gothic wiljan "to will,
    abstruse
    1590s, "remote from comprehension," from French abstrus (16c.) or directly from Latin abstrusus "hidden, concealed, secret," past participle of abstrudere "conceal, hide," literally "to thrust away," from assimilated form of ab "off, away from" (see ab-) + trudere "to thrust, pus
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    "sudden mass terror," especially an exaggerated fright affecting a number of persons without visible cause or inspired by trifling cause or danger, 1708, from an earlier adjective (c. 1600, modifying fear, terror, etc.), from French panique (15c.), from Greek panikon, literally "
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    c. 1600, "to select by lot and put to death every tenth man," from Latin decimatus, past participle of decimare "the removal or destruction of one-tenth," from decem "ten" (from PIE root *dekm- "ten"). The killing of one in ten, chosen by lots, from a rebellious city or a mutinou

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