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requiem mass

 - 3 dictionary results

Req⋅ui⋅em

  [rek-wee-uhm, ree-kwee-, rey-]
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–noun
1. Roman Catholic Church.
a. Also called Requiem Mass. the Mass celebrated for the repose of the souls of the dead.
b. a celebration of this Mass.
c. a plainsong setting for this Mass.
2. any musical service, hymn, or dirge for the repose of the dead.
Also, req⋅ui⋅em.

Origin:
1275–1325; ME < L, acc. of requiēs rest (the first word of the introit of the mass for the dead)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Cultural Dictionary

Requiem [(rek-wee-uhm)]

In music, a Mass for one or more dead persons, containing biblical passages and prayers for the admission of the dead to heaven. The term has been loosely applied to other musical compositions in honor of the dead. A German Requiem by Johannes Brahms, for example, uses texts from the Bible but is not a Mass.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

requiem 
"mass for repose of the soul of the dead," c.1303, from L. requiem, accusative sing. of requies "rest (after labor), repose," from re-, intensive prefix, + quies "quiet" (see quiet). It is the first word of the Mass for the Dead in the Latin liturgy: "Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine ...."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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