hagiology

American  

[hag-ee-ol-uh-jee, hey-jee-] / ˌhæg iˈɒl ə dʒi, ˌheɪ dʒi- /

noun

• hagiologies
  plural

1. the branch of literature dealing with the lives and legends of the saints.

2. a biography or narrative of a saint or saints.

3. a collection of such biographies or narratives.

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hagiology British  

/ ˌhæɡɪˈɒlədʒɪ, ˌhæɡɪəˈlɒdʒɪk /

noun

1. literature concerned with the lives and legends of saints

2. 1. a biography of a saint

   2. a collection of such biographies

3. an authoritative canon of saints

4. a history of sacred writings

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hagiologist
  noun
• hagiologic
  adjective
• hagiological
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• hagiologies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hagiology

First recorded in 1800–10; hagio- + -logy

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hagiology hagiologies

Biographer Maynard contributes nothing essentially new, is content in his popularization merely to introduce to modern Americans cue of the most unexpected personalities in Catholic hagiology.

From Time Magazine Archive

The men who invented the country 200 years ago have long since been enshrouded by the myths of textbooks and the mists of hagiology.

From Time Magazine Archive

Lenin's place in the Soviet hagiology, however, was not equally secure; he was becoming a mere peg on which to hang verbal votive offerings to Russian nationalism and to Stalin.

From Time Magazine Archive

And then at age 44, a fatal car crash, after which the rest is the kind of pop hagiology that America reserves for its culture heroes.

From Time Magazine Archive

And as a phenomenon, let us not deceive ourselves on the magnitude of the Christian hagiology.

From Short Studies on Great Subjects by Froude, James Anthony

Our old Scottish hagiologies, witch trials, ecclesiastical records, etc., abound with notices of them.

From Archaeological Essays, Vol. 1 by Stuart, John