covenanter

Etymology

From covenant + -er, referring to the covenant sworn by Israel in the Old Testament.

covenanter means one who makes a covenant. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 86 out of 100.

Why this word is great

COVENANTER — [Noun] A person bound by a solemn agreement; historically, a member of the 17th-century Scottish Presbyterian movement pledged to defend their faith via the National Covenant and Solemn League and Covenant. From covenant (from Old French covenant, present participle of covenir, "to agree," from Latin convenire, "to come together, agree") + the agent noun suffix -er. Unlike a noncovenanter—a label of specific historical refusal—or a covenantist—a broader, less historically freighted designation—the term "covenanter" is irrevocably stamped by the solemn, public act of subscription. It is the scrape of a quill on vellum in a cold kirk, the grit of oatcake and psalm on a fugitive's tongue in the heather, and the specific, stubborn light in the eyes of a prisoner on the Bass Rock—a testament that some agreements are not transactions, but identities forged under the terrible gravity of a promise written in land and blood.

noun

One who makes a covenant.
A member of a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland during the 17th century.