parapherna means A woman's property which was not made a part of her marriage dower, but remained her own. It carries an Arena rating of 1436, earned across 68 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, parapherna ranks #735 of 17,132 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #1,747 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #2,393 of 17,151 for The Improbable, #2,556 of 17,149 for Most Exacting Words.
Why “parapherna” is a great word
PARAPHERNA — [Noun] In historical legal contexts, a married woman's personal property, such as clothing and jewelry, which was not included in her marriage dowry and remained under her own control. From Late Latin parapherna, from Ancient Greek παράφερνα (parápherna, "things additional to a dowry"), from παρα- (para-, "beside") + φερνή (phernḗ, "dowry"). Unlike a "dowry," property transferred to a husband's authority, or "paraphernalia," its modern descendant denoting miscellaneous equipment, parapherna signifies a specific, legally acknowledged sphere of female autonomy. It was the cool insistence of inherited pearls in a locked case, the private weight of a key on a chatelaine, and the intimate scent of lavender in a linen press—a modest but tangible claim to a self that existed outside the overwhelming unity of marriage.
Etymology
From Late Latin parapherna, from Ancient Greek παράφερνα (parápherna, “things additional to a dowry”), from παρα- (para-, “beside”) + φερνή (phernḗ, “dowry”). In the propertied classes, a dowry was placed under the control of the husband, while the 'paraphernalia' which she brought with her remained the wife’s property.
noun
- A woman's property which was not made a part of her marriage dower, but remained her own.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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