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ereklyés oltár - hermaoltár

English translation: reliquary altar - altar with head reliquary

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Hungarian term or phrase:ereklyés oltár - hermaoltár
English translation:reliquary altar - altar with head reliquary
Entered by: Nora0807

13:31 Jul 19, 2021
Hungarian to English translations [PRO]
Religion
Hungarian term or phrase: ereklyés oltár - hermaoltár
I am looking for the proper distinction between "ereklyés oltár" and "hermaoltár" in English. I suppose the difference is that the first is an altar containing a relic of the saint, whereas the second has some relic from the head cased in a herm(a). However, the dictionary for the word "herm(a)" in English gives "stone column ending in bearded head" - therefore I think it is not the proper word to use here.
The text is for religious people about Budapest saints and beatific confessionaries.
Nora0807
Local time: 02:21
reliquary altar - altar with head reliquary
Explanation:
It seems that although both the Hungarian and the English words share the same Ancient Greek root, the Hungarian word (herma) has an additional semantic meaning not found in English. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a herm is "a statue in the form of a square stone pillar surmounted by a bust or head especially of Hermes".

Several articles point out that a reliquary (an object used to store relics) may have several forms, such as a philatory or a monstrance, depending on their intended use. However, no special words refer to the actual body part encased in them. Articles simply call them "an arm reliquary" or "a foot reliquary". To denote the object that encases a head/skull fragment, one should rather write "a head reliquary".

The description of an object from the British Museum:
"Head reliquary of St Eustace and wooden core; silver-gilt repoussé head with gem-set filigree circlet binding straight hair; nine gems composed of varieties of quartz (rock crystal, chalcedony, amethyst, carnelian), two of aragonite (pearl, mother of pearl), one of obsidian and six of glass."

An altar combined with a reliquary is called a reliquary altar, hence my suggestion to write an "altar with head reliquary".
Selected response from:

nbalazs00
Hungary
Local time: 02:21
Grading comment
Thank you so much, it has been most helpful.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5reliquary altar - altar with head reliquary
nbalazs00


  

Answers


4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
reliquary altar - altar with head reliquary


Explanation:
It seems that although both the Hungarian and the English words share the same Ancient Greek root, the Hungarian word (herma) has an additional semantic meaning not found in English. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a herm is "a statue in the form of a square stone pillar surmounted by a bust or head especially of Hermes".

Several articles point out that a reliquary (an object used to store relics) may have several forms, such as a philatory or a monstrance, depending on their intended use. However, no special words refer to the actual body part encased in them. Articles simply call them "an arm reliquary" or "a foot reliquary". To denote the object that encases a head/skull fragment, one should rather write "a head reliquary".

The description of an object from the British Museum:
"Head reliquary of St Eustace and wooden core; silver-gilt repoussé head with gem-set filigree circlet binding straight hair; nine gems composed of varieties of quartz (rock crystal, chalcedony, amethyst, carnelian), two of aragonite (pearl, mother of pearl), one of obsidian and six of glass."

An altar combined with a reliquary is called a reliquary altar, hence my suggestion to write an "altar with head reliquary".


    https://mymodernmet.com/what-is-a-reliquary/
nbalazs00
Hungary
Local time: 02:21
Native speaker of: Hungarian
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Thank you so much, it has been most helpful.
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you so much, it has been most helpful. Nora

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