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Origin and history of Spitalfields

Spitalfields

district east of London, famed by early 19c. for the refugee Huguenot weavers who took up residence there; named for St. Mary Spital, from spital, a Middle English shortened form of hospital (q.v.) attested by late 12c. in names, sometimes also spittle, hence spittle-man "one who lives in a hospital;" spytel-house "hospital building."

also from early 19c.

Entries linking to Spitalfields

hospital(n.)

mid-13c., "shelter for the needy," from Old French hospital, ospital "hostel, shelter, lodging" (Modern French hôpital), from Late Latin hospitale "guest-house, inn," noun use of neuter of Latin adjective hospitalis "of a guest or host" (as a noun, "a guest; the duties of hospitality"), from hospes (genitive hospitis) "guest; host;" see host (n.1).

The sense of "charitable institution to house and maintain the needy" in English is from early 15c.; the meaning "institution for sick or wounded people" is recorded by 1540s. The same word, contracted, is hostel and hotel. The sense shift in Latin from duties to buildings might have been via the common term cubiculum hospitalis "guest-chamber." The Latin adjective use continued in Old French, where ospital also could mean "hospitable" and ospitalite could mean "hospital."

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    spittle
    "saliva, spit, mucous substance secreted by the saliva glands," late 15c., probably an alteration (by influence of spit (n.1)) of Middle English spetel, spotel, from Old English spætl, spatl, from Proto-Germanic *spait- (source also of Old English spætan "to spit"), from PIE root
    ginger
    11c., from Old English ginȝifer, ginȝiber, from Late Latin gingiber, from Latin zingiberi, from Greek zingiberis, from Prakrit (Middle Indic) singabera, from Sanskrit srngaveram, from srngam "horn" + vera- "body," so called from the shape of its root. But this may be Sanskrit fol
    respite
    mid-13c., "extension of time for an action, deliberation, etc., grace period; postponement of an action, judgment, etc.," from Old French respit "delay, respect" (Modern French répit), from Latin respectus "consideration, recourse, regard," literally "act of looking back (or ofte
    seal
    "design stamped on wax," especially an impressed figure attached to a document as evidence of authenticity, c. 1200, sel, sele, from Old French seel, seal "seal on a letter" (Modern French sceau), from Vulgar Latin *sigellum (source of Italian suggello, Spanish sello; also Old Fr
    experience
    late 14c., "observation as the source of knowledge; actual observation; an event which has affected one," from Old French esperience "experiment, proof, experience" (13c.), from Latin experientia "a trial, proof, experiment; knowledge gained by repeated trials," from experientem
    dignity
    c. 1200, "state of being worthy," from Old French dignite "dignity, privilege, honor," from Latin dignitatem (nominative dignitas) "worthiness," from dignus "worth (n.), worthy, proper, fitting," from PIE *dek-no-, suffixed form of root *dek- "to take, accept." From c. 1300 as "a
    heredity
    1530s, "inheritance, succession," from French hérédité, from Old French eredite "inheritance, legacy" (12c.), from Latin hereditatem (nominative hereditas) "heirship, inheritance, an inheritance, condition of being an heir," from heres (genitive heredis) "heir, heiress" (from PIE
    soccer
    1889, socca, later socker (1891), soccer (1895), originally university slang (with jocular formation -er (3)), from a shortened form of Assoc., abbreviation of association in Football Association (as distinguished from Rugby football). An unusual formation, but those who did it p
    humble
    late 13c., of persons, "submissive, respectful, lowly in manner, modest, not self-asserting, obedient," from Old French humble, umble, earlier umele, from Latin humilis "lowly, humble," literally "on the ground," from humus "earth" (from PIE root *dhghem- "earth"). From late 14c.
    supplication
    late 14c., supplicacioun, "earnest request, entreaty, plea," from Old French suplicacion "humble request" and directly from Latin supplicationem (nominative supplicatio) "a public prayer, thanksgiving day," noun of action from past-participle stem of supplicare "to beg humbly" (i

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