compostela

Etymology

From Spanish Compostela, from Galician Compostela, from Latin compositella (“the little well-organized one”), from composita (“put together, arranged”) + -ella (“-elle: forming diminutives”), from compōnere (“to put together”), from con- (“with, together”) + pōnere (“to put, to place”), q.v.

compostela means A certificate of accomplishment given to pilgrims on completing an official route on the pilgramage to Camino de Santiago. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 83 out of 100.

Why this word is great

COMPOSTELA — [Noun] A certificate of accomplishment issued to pilgrims upon completing an official route of the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. From Spanish Compostela, from Galician Compostela, from Latin compositella ('the little well-organized one'), from composita ('put together, arranged') + -ella ('-elle: forming diminutives'), from compōnere ('to put together'). Unlike a 'diploma,' which formalizes an intellectual terminus, or an 'indulgence,' which promises a spiritual credit, the compostela is a testament to corporeal endurance. It is the ink-stamp from a rural monastery pressed into a creased credential; the smell of rain and hostel soap clinging to the paper; the final, mute click of the cathedral office's stamp—proof that the body, too, can keep a ledger of its penance. One carries it home as evidence not of arrival, but of having been dissolved and provisionally recomposed by the road.

noun

A certificate of accomplishment given to pilgrims on completing an official route on the pilgramage to Camino de Santiago.“Pilgrims arriving in Santiago de Compostela who have walked at least the last 100 km (62 mi), or cycled 200 km (120 mi) to get there (as indicated on their credencial), and who state that their motivation was at least partially religious, are eligible for the compostela from the Pilgrim's Office in Santiago.”