Kirk

Kirk is a Scottish word meaning a church, or more specifically, the Church of Scotland. Many place names and personal names are derived from it.

Basic meaning and etymology

As a common noun, kirk (meaning 'church') is found in Scots, Scottish English and some English dialects, attested as a noun from the 14th century onwards, but as an element in placenames much earlier. Both words, kirk and church, derive from the Koine Greek κυριακόν (δωμα) (kyriakon (dōma)) meaning Lord's (house), which was borrowed into the Germanic languages in late antiquity, possibly in the course of the Gothic missions. (Only a connection with the idiosyncrasies of Gothic explains how a Greek neuter noun became a Germanic feminine.) Whereas church displays Old English palatalisation, kirk is a loanword from Old Norse and thus has the original mainland Germanic consonants. Compare cognates: Icelandic & Faroese kirkja; Swedish kyrka; Norwegian (Nynorsk) kyrkje; Norwegian (Bokmål) & Danish kirke; German Kirche (reflecting palatalization before unstressed front vowel); Dutch kerk; West Frisian tsjerke; and borrowed into non-Germanic languages: Estonian kirik and Finnish kirkko.

Kirk (surname)

Kirk is a surname. Notable persons with that surname include:

Circe

In Greek mythology, Circe (/ˈsɜːrsiː/; Greek Κίρκη Kírkē pronounced [kírkɛ͜ɛ]) is a goddess of magic (or sometimes a nymph, witch, enchantress or sorceress). By most accounts, Circe was the daughter of Helios, the god of the sun, and Perse, an Oceanid. Her brothers were Aeetes, the keeper of the Golden Fleece, and Perses. Her sister was Pasiphaë, the wife of King Minos and mother of the Minotaur. Other accounts make her the daughter of Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft herself.

Circe was renowned for her vast knowledge of potions and herbs. Through the use of magical potions and a wand or a staff, she transformed her enemies, or those who offended her, into animals. Some say she was exiled to the solitary island of Aeaea by her subjects and her father for ending the life of her husband, the prince of Colchis. Later traditions tell of her leaving or even destroying the island and moving to Italy, where she was identified with Cape Circeo.

In ancient literature

Homer's Odyssey

Archdeacon of Hastings

The Archdeacon of Hastings is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England Diocese of Chichester. The Diocese of Chichester almost exactly covers the counties of East and West Sussex and the City of Brighton and Hove, stretching for nearly a hundred miles (160 km) along the south coast of England.

History

The two original archdeaconries of Chichester diocese, Chichester and Lewes, were created in the 12th century – at around the time when archdeacons were first appointed across England. The third archdeaconry, Hastings, was created on 28 June 1912. The archdeaconries were then reorganised under Eric Kemp (Bishop of Chichester) on 28 June 1975: the Hastings archdeaconry was dissolved and her territory returned to Lewes archdeaconry, which was renamed "Lewes & Hastings"; and a new archdeaconry of Horsham was created.

On 12 May 2014, it was announced that the diocese is to take forward proposals to create a fourth archdeaconry (presently referred to as Brighton.) Since Lewes itself would be within the new archdeaconry, Lewes & Hastings archdeaconry would become simply Hastings archdeaconry. On 8 August 2014, the Church Times reported that the archdeaconry had been renamed.

Peter Griffin

Peter Griffin is one of the main characters of the American animated sitcom Family Guy. He is voiced by cartoonist Seth MacFarlane and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the family, in the 15-minute short on December 20, 1998. Peter was created and designed by MacFarlane himself. MacFarlane was asked to pitch a pilot to the Fox Broadcasting Company based on Larry & Steve, a short made by MacFarlane which featured a middle-aged character named Larry and an intellectual dog, Steve. After the pilot was given the green light, The Griffin family appeared on the episode "Death Has a Shadow".

Peter is married to Lois Griffin and is the father of Meg, Chris, and Stewie. He also has a dog named Brian, with whom he is best friends. He has worked at a toy factory, and at Quahog's Brewery. Despite the suburban blue-collar routine of his life, he has had a number of remarkable experiences.

Peter's voice was inspired by a janitor that MacFarlane heard at his school. His appearance was a redesign of the protagonist Larry from MacFarlane's previous animated short films The Life of Larry and Larry & Steve. He has appeared in several pieces of Family Guy merchandise, including toys, T-shirts and a video game, and has made crossover appearances in other shows, including The Simpsons, South Park, Drawn Together, American Dad!, and the Family Guy spin-off The Cleveland Show.

Peter, Duke of the Romans

Peter was a mediaeval Roman noble. He was the son of Alberic III, Count of Tusculum.

Family tree

Sources