Anathem

Lorite: A member of an Order founded by Saunt Lora, who believed that all of the ideas that the human mind was capable of coming up with had already been come up with. Lorites are, therefore, historians of thought who assist other avout in their work by making them aware of others who have thought similar things in the past, and thereby preventing them from re-inventing the wheel.

Lucub: At a Convox, an informal work group that, on the members’ own initiative, meets in the evening to “burn the midnight oil” on some topic of shared interest.

Ma: An informal term of respect by which a fid might address a more senior suur.

Magister: Title bestowed on the clergy of the Kelx faith.

Matarrhite: One of an Order founded at the Centenarian math of the Concent of Saunt Beedle’s between the Second and Third Cente

Math: A relatively small community of avout (typically fewer than a hundred, sometimes as small as one). In general, all members of a given math celebrate Apert on the same schedule, i.e., all of them are either Unarians, Decenarians, Centenarians, or Millenarians. Compare Concent.

Messal: At certain (typically larger and older) concents, the traditional way of taking the evening meal, in which no more than seven senior avout (doyns) are waited on by an equal number of junior avout (servitors).

Metatheorics: Equivalent to metaphysics on Earth. The part of human thought that addresses questions so fundamental that they must be settled before one can even begin to do productive work in theorics.

Metekoranes: A theor of ancient times who was buried under volcanic ash in the eruption that destroyed Orithena. According to some traditions, the founder (probably unwittingly) of the Old Lineage. See Lineage, Old.

Millenarian: An avout sworn not to emerge from the math or to have contact with the outside world until the next Mille

Mobe: A wheeled passenger vehicle used extramuros.

Muncoster, Saunt: (1) A theor of the late Praxic Age, responsible for crucial advances in what is called, on Earth, general relativity. (2) One of the Big Three concents.

Mynster: At many concents, the large centrally located building that houses the clock and that serves as the venue for auts and other gatherings of the entire population.

Mystagogue: One who is fond of mysterious thinking and obfuscatory cant. In the Old Mathic Age, an all too powerful faction during the centuries leading to the Rebirth. Since then, a pejorative term.

Newmatter: A form of matter whose atomic nuclei were artificially synthesized and which therefore has physical properties not found in naturally occurring elements or their compounds.

One Hundred and Sixty-four: A list of plants allowed to be cultivated within maths by the version of the Discipline current at the time in which Anathem is set. Expanded from shorter lists found in earlier versions of the Discipline dating all the way back to Saunt Cartas. The plants on the list are deemed adequate to supply all nutritional requirements of the avout as well as filling other needs including medicinal, shade, erosion control, etc. Compare Eleven.

One-off: Informal term for a Unarian (see).

Orithena: A temple founded in ancient times by Adrakhones on the Isle of Ecba, later populated by physiologers who migrated there from all over the ancient world. Destroyed by a volcanic eruption in −2621, excavated, begi

Orth: The classical language used by all classes of people in the Bazian Empire and, during the Old Mathic Age, used intramuros in both Cartasian maths and Bazian Orthodox monasteries. The language of science and learned discourse in the Praxic Age. In a revived and modernized form, the language used at almost all times by the avout. May also denote the alphabet used to write it.

Pa: An informal term of respect by which a fid might address a more senior fraa.

Panjandrum: Fraa Orolo’s pejorative term for a high-ranking official of the Sæcular Power.

Penance: Tedious or unpleasant chore assigned as punishment by the Warden Regulant to avout who have violated the Discipline.

Peregrin: (1) In ancient usage, the epoch begi

Perelithian Liaison: See Liaison, Perelithian.

Periklyne: An open area in the ancient city-state of Ethras, home to the market, where Golden Age theors were wont to congregate and engage one another in Dialog.

Physiologer: In the span of time between Cnoüs and Diax, a thinker who followed the Hylaean Way, i.e., who favored Hylaea’s interpretation of her father’s vision. The foreru

Plane: Used as a verb, utterly to destroy an opponent’s position in the course of a Dialog.

Plenary: In a Convox, an event in which all attendees come together in the same room at the same time for some purpose.

Polycosm: Two or more universes (cosmi), especially when considered as a system that includes the possibility of interactions between cosmi.

Præsidium: In Mathic architecture, the tallest structure in a concent, typically the clock tower.

Praxic Age: Period of Arbre’s history begi

Praxic: An applied scientist, an engineer.

Praxis: Technology.

Primate: The highest-ranking hierarch in a math or concent.

Proc: A late Praxic Age metatheorician, the standard-bearer in his age of the theorical lineage traceable to the Sphenics, and the progenitor of all orders that trace their descent to the Syntactic (as opposed to Semantic) Faculties of the early post-Reconstitution maths. Contrast with Halikaarn.

Procian: Of, or relating to, Saunt Proc or any of the Orders that claim descent from the Syntactic Faculties. Frequently seen as natural opponents of Halikaarnians.

Protan: Of or relating to the ancient Ethran philosopher Protas.

Protas: A student of Thelenes during the Golden Age of Ethras, later the most important theor in Arbran history. Building on the foundation laid by Hylaea and later strengthened by the Orithenans, developed the notion that the objects and ideas that humans perceive and think about are imperfect manifestations of pure, ideal forms that exist in another plane of existence.