Maltese edit

Etymology edit

From Arabic دَيْر (dayr, convent, monastery), from Classical Syriac ܕܝܪܐ (dayrā). The meaning “castle, fortress” perhaps influenced by the militant Order of Malta. The knowledge about the word’s origins seems to have been lost rather early, as Vassalli already treats the sense “convent” as secondary and thinks that the basic meaning is “large house” (it being merely a variant of dar).

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

dejr m

  1. (archaic, chiefly in placenames) a castle, fortress
    Synonyms: kastell, fortizza
  2. (obsolete, found in placenames) a convent, monastery
    Synonyms: kunvent, monasteru