noun, plural hag·i·ol·o·gies for 2, 3.
- the branch of literature dealing with the lives and legends of the saints.
- a biography or narrative of a saint or saints.
- a collection of such biographies or narratives.
noun plural -gies
- literature concerned with the lives and legends of saints
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- a biography of a saint
- a collection of such biographies
- an authoritative canon of saints
- a history of sacred writings
“study of saints’ lives,” 1807, from Greek hagios “holy, devoted to the gods” + -ology. First element perhaps from PIE *yag- “to worship, reverence,” and cognate with Greek agnos “chaste,” Sanskrit yajati “reveres (a god) with sacrifices, worships,” Old Persian ayadana “temple.” Related: Hagiologist (1805).