dictionary

archery:

he practice of bows and arrows.

backgammon:

a board game where each player has 15 pieces. Pieces are moved around the board by rolling the dice

book of hours:

a prayer book. In the front of the prayer book there would have been a calendar for the year and the

Saints'

days were marked in red. These were festival days and very special. The saying "a red letter day" comes from the red

letters that

marked the Saints' days on the calendar

codex:

another word for 'book' used in the Middle Ages.

crusades:

ventures of the kings into the Holy Land to find holy relics

liege lord:

someone who owned land. People worked the land by the grace of the liege lord. Sometimes service as a knight

was required for use of the land. Then, often times the knights had workers on the land that they were allowed to use.

Charlemagne called all of his lords to annual meetings where they would plan battles and discuss ruling the land.

lute:

a pear-shaped stringed instrument. Much like a guitar today.

mail-coat:

armor worn by warriors in battle

manuscript:

comes from the Latin words

manus

which means 'hand' and

scriptum

which means 'written'.

medieval:

comes from

medium aevum

, which is Latin for 'middle age'.

monastery:

a community where monks or religious people lived. Young people were often educated by the monks or

religious

people who lived in the monasteries.

monk:

a man who is a member of a religious group or order. Monks promise to live in poverty and in obedience to God.

parchment:

the dried, stretched skin of sheep, goats or other animals that were used to write on before the introduction of paper.

poupee:

the word used before the word "doll" became part of the English language in the 17th century

relics:

evidence of Christ and the saints. Relics often included pieces of clothing that saints wore, bones of the saints, or

things

the saints may have used (like a walking stick or a cup)

reliquaries:

fancy containers made to hold relics. Sainte Chapelle was a reliquary built by Isabelle's father, Louis IX to hold

the

crown of thorns put on Christ's head before he was put to death.

St. Alban Psalter:

a book of prayer that also tells the story of Alexis, who leaves his home to serve God. The story of

Alexis was

one of the earliest pieces of French literature.

stylus:

A sharp, pointed, pencil-shaped instrument used for writing,

marking,

or engraving