Meaning & use
festschrift
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Meaning
nouncountable
A book of essays or articles written by different authors to honor a scholar, usually on a special occasion like retirement.
Grammar: Countable: a festschrift, two festschrifts. The plural can also be 'festschriften' in academic writing.
Patterns
- a festschrift for someone
- a festschrift in honor of someone
- publish a festschrift
The university published a festschrift for Professor Smith on his 70th birthday.
Her colleagues presented her with a festschrift containing essays by former students.
The festschrift includes contributions from leading experts in the field.
Word forms
| plural | festschrifts |
|---|---|
| plural (alternative) | festschriften |
Common combinations
- a festschrift for
- They edited a festschrift for their mentor.
- a festschrift in honor of
- A festschrift in honor of the professor was published last year.
- publish a festschrift
- The department decided to publish a festschrift to mark the occasion.
- contribute to a festschrift
- Many scholars contributed to the festschrift.
Synonyms and how they differ
- commemorative volume
- A more general term for a book that honors someone; festschrift is the specific academic term.
- tribute
- A tribute can be any act or gift showing respect; a festschrift is specifically a collection of writings.
Commonly confused: festschrift or Festschrift?
festschrift vs Festschrift
The German word is capitalized as a noun; in English it is usually lowercase unless at the start of a sentence.
Practice
What is a festschrift?
Choose one answer.
A festschrift is a book of writings by various authors published to honor a scholar. The other options are unrelated meanings or similar-sounding words.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “festschrift”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.