Colombier
/ˈkɒl.əm.bi.eɪ/noun
A dovecote, especially a large building or structure kept for breeding pigeons.
Did you know?In medieval and early modern France, the right to maintain a colombier—known as the droit de colombier—was often a seigneurial privilege associated with landowning elites.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
columba
“Dove or pigeon; the ultimate source is probably an older Mediterranean word of uncertain origin.”
Classical Latin
Latin
columbarium
“A dovecote; literally a place associated with pigeons, also later used for niches holding funerary urns.”
Late Latin
Latin
columbarius
“Relating to doves or a dovecote.”
Old French
Old French
colombier
“Dovecote or pigeon house, descended through French forms from Latin columbarium.”
15th Century
English
colombier
“A dovecote; a rare English borrowing from French.”
Modern English
English
colombier
“A dovecote, chiefly encountered in historical, architectural, or antiquarian writing.”
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