the skin of sheep, goats, etc., prepared for use as a material on which to write.
2.
a manuscript or document on such material.
3.
a stiff, off-white paper resembling this material.
4.
a diploma.
Origin: 1275–1325; late ME < MF, OF (parche < L Parthica (pellis) Parthian (leather) + -ment(cf. ML percamentum, D perkament)); r. ME parchemin < OF (-min < ML pergamīnum, var. of pergamēnum, for LL Pergamēna charta paper of Pergamum)
[pahrch-muh
nt] 