parvis

[ pahr-vis ]

noun

1. a vacant enclosed area in front of a church.
2. a colonnade or portico in front of a church.

parvis

/ ˈpɑːvɪs /

noun

1. a court or portico in front of a building, esp a church

Word History and Origins

Origin of parvis¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French; Old French pare ( v ) is < Late Latin paradīsus church courtyard, originally the one before St. Peter's, Rome. See paradise

Word History and Origins

Origin of parvis¹

C14: via Old French from Late Latin paradīsus paradise

Example Sentences

In Paris, they marred the city’s famous public spaces, cluttering the Esplanade des Invalides, the Place Vendôme, the banks of the Seine, and the parvis in front of Notre Dame.

From Slate

Later, when a man he meets via a dating app makes a racist comment, an unruffled Parvis puts him in his place — “I’m not into man-child krauts” — and walks out.

From New York Times

As Parvis and Amon begin to fall in love, and Bana is faced with deportation, Parvis reckons with all the ways in which he’s similar yet different from his new companions, thanks to nothing but an accident of birth.

From New York Times

“They do what they have to do, and we find out at the end,” said Parvis Mizrahi, owner of the Prince & Princess merchandise shop and its building.

From Washington Post

Silly family, silly royalty, silly half-naked chief Aparura, silly stockbroker, silly bacteriologist, to say nothing of the good-looking, blond Prince von und zu Thurm und Parvis, have been transformed.

From Los Angeles Times