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Origin and history of stole

stole(n.)

Middle English stol, from Old English stole "long garment, robe; scarf-like garment worn around the neck or over the shoulder by clergymen," from Latin stola "robe, vestment" (also source of Old French estole, Modern French étole, Spanish estola, Italian stola), from Greek stolē "a long robe;" originally "garment, equipment," from root of stellein "to place, array," with a secondary sense of "to put on" robes, etc. (from PIE root *stel- "to put, stand, put in order," with derivatives referring to a standing object or place).

The meaning "women's long garment of fur or feathers," shaped somewhat like the ecclesiastical stole, is attested from 1889.

Entries linking to stole

stola(n.)

ample outer tunic or dress worn by Roman women, 1728, from Latinized form of Greek stolē (see stole). Plural stolae. "It was a characteristic garment of the Roman matrons, as the toga was of the men, and divorced women and courtezans were not permitted to wear it" [Century Dictionary].

stoled(adj.)

"wearing a stole," 1540s; see stole. A verb stolen "to furnish (a church) with altar-stoles" (late 15c.).

*stel-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to put, stand, put in order," with derivatives referring to a standing object or place.

It might form all or part of: apostle; catastaltic; diastole; epistle; forestall; Gestalt; install; installment; pedestal; peristalsis; peristaltic; stale (adj.); stalk (n.); stall (n.1) "place in a stable for animals;" stall (n.2) "pretense to avoid doing something;" stall (v.1) "come to a stop, become stuck;" stallage; stallion; stele; stell; still (adj.); stilt; stole (n.); stolid; stolon; stout; stultify; systaltic; systole.

It might also be the source of: Greek stellein "to put in order, make ready; equip or dress with weapons, clothes, etc.; prepare (for a journey), dispatch; to furl (sails);" Armenian stełc-anem "to prepare, create;" Albanian shtiell "to wind up, reel up, collect;" Old Church Slavonic po-steljo "I spread;" Old Prussian stallit "to stand;" Old English steall "standing place, stable," Old High German stellen "to set, place."

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    Trends of stole

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

    More to explore

    promethium
    From Prometheus (q.v.), who stole fire from the gods and was punished for it, + element name ending -ium....
    Prometheus
    in Greek mythology, a demigod (son of the Titan Iapetus) who made man from clay and stole fire from heaven and taught mankind...
    stable
    For what the grete Stiede Is stole, thanne he taketh hiede, And makth the stable dore fast....
    vamp
    Previously the word was used as a pejorative for men, perhaps shortened from vamper, originally indicating dishonest men who stole...
    scarf
    [band of silk, strip of cloth], 1550s, "a band worn across the body or over the shoulders," probably from Old North French escarpe "sash, sling," which probably is identical with Old French escherpe "pilgrim's purse suspended from the neck," perhaps from Frankish *skirpja or some
    pluck
    Middle English plukken, "pull (something) off or out from a surface" (especially hair or feathers, but also teeth), from late Old English ploccian, pluccian "pull off, cull," from West Germanic *plokken (source also of Middle Low German plucken, Middle Dutch plocken, Dutch plukke
    gain
    c. 1200, gein, "advantage, benefit; help," c. 1300, "reward, profit, that which has been acquired" (possessions, resources, wealth), from Old French gain, gaaigne "gain, profit, advantage; work, business; booty; arable land" (12c.), from Germanic, and from Old Norse (see gain (v.
    roll
    c. 1200, rolle, "rolled-up piece of parchment or paper, scroll" (especially one inscribed with an official record), from Old French rolle "document, parchment scroll, decree" (12c.), Medieval Latin rotulus "a roll of paper" (source also of Spanish rollo, Italian rullo), from Lati
    abstract
    late 14c., originally in grammar (in reference to nouns that do not name concrete things), from Latin abstractus "drawn away," past participle of abstrahere "to drag away, detach, pull away, divert," also used figuratively; from assimilated form of ab "off, away from" (see ab-) +
    plunder
    "take goods or valuable forcibly from, take by pillage or open force," 1630s, from German plündern, from Middle High German plunderen "to plunder," originally "to take away household furniture," from plunder (n.) "household goods, clothes," also "lumber, baggage" (14c.; compare M

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