Festschrift
Noun
- A collection of writings published in honor of a scholar.
Example Sentences
“The retiring professor’s former students presented her with a Festschrift containing essays inspired by her poetry.”
“Instead of a traditional Festschrift, they created a video compilation featuring tributes from scholars worldwide.”
“The conference organizers published a Festschrift honoring the founding director’s contributions to the field.”
Word Origin
German, late 19th century
Why this word?
Don’t be too intimidated by this word borrowed from German. Look at the first syllable for a familiar term: “fest.” In German, “Fest” means “celebration” and “Schrift” means “writing”; combining those gives us Festschrift,” which is a collection of writing that celebrates a particular author or scholar. In German, nouns are capitalized, and when a German noun enters the English language, sometimes the capitalization remains as well. Festschrifts are usually academic in nature, such as a compilation of essays inspired by a particular philosopher, but there’s a multitude of pop culture criticism and appreciation that could fall under this umbrella. For example, “The Stanley Kubrick Archives,” a coffee table book filled with essays and photos that serve as a tribute to the celebrated 20th-century filmmaker, could be considered a Festschrift.
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