Whats the origin of “man of the cloth”?
Dear Straight Dope: What is the origin of the term “man of the cloth”? I know its used to refer to priests, but why “man of the cloth” instead of man of the cross or something. Also, is the term appropriate for clergymen of any religion (rabbis, imams, voodoo witchdoctors, etc.) or is it reserved for Catholic priests? — Eliezer Ben-Shmuel, Pittsburg (yes, its really spelled that way), California One of the joys of this kind of research is the little things one finds out along the way. I’ll try to limit the asides, and keep mostly on track here. We start with the word “cloth,” which may have been influenced by Clotho, one of the three fates in ancient Greek myths. Clotho was the one who spun the thread of life, which was then measured by Lachesis and cut by Atropos. The English word “cloth” does not directly derive from Clotho, but rather from a Germanic root of uncertain origin. It was clath or clathe in Old English, and the change of the vowel may have been influenced by the name of t
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