Lector is
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a
loan
In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...
, such as french: lecteur, en, lector, pl, lektor and russian: лектор. It has various specialized uses.
Academic
The title ''lector'' may be applied to
lecturers and
readers at some universities. There is also the title ''lector jubilate'', which is an equivalent of
Doctor of Divinity
A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity.
In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...
. In language teaching at universities in
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
, a foreign native speaker of a
Slavic language
The Slavic languages, also known as the Slavonic languages, are Indo-European languages spoken primarily by the Slavic peoples and their descendants. They are thought to descend from a proto-language called Proto-Slavic, spoken during the E ...
is often called a ''lektor'' or ''lector''. In Dutch higher education the title lector is used for the leader of a research group at a university of applied science. The lector has a comparable set of tasks as (higher ranked) full professors at a (research) university, albeit at an applied rather than a fundamental scientific level.
Ecclesiastical
A religious
reader is sometimes referred to as a ''lector''. The lector proclaims the Scripture readings used in the Liturgy from the official
liturgical book
A liturgical book, or service book, is a book published by the authority of a church body that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official religious services.
Christianity Roman Rite
In the Roman Rite of the Catholic ...
(
lectionary
A lectionary ( la, lectionarium) is a book or listing that contains a collection of scripture readings appointed for Christian or Judaic worship on a given day or occasion. There are sub-types such as a "gospel lectionary" or evangeliary, and an ...
).
Television
In
Polish, ''lektor'' is also used to mean "off-screen reader" or "voice-over artist". A ''lektor'' is a (usually male) reader who provides the Polish
voice-over on foreign-language programmes and films where the
voice-over translation technique is used. This is the standard
localization technique on Polish television and (as an option) on many DVDs; full
dubbing is generally reserved for children's material.
Cigar production
Historically, lectors (known as ''lectores'' in Cuba)
or readers in a
cigar factory entertained workers by reading books or newspapers aloud, often left-wing publications, paid for by unions or by workers pooling their money. In the United States, the custom was common in the cigar factories of
Ybor City in
Tampa
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough Co ...
but was discontinued after the
Tampa cigar makers' strike of 1931.
The practice apparently originated in Cuba, and is still known there today, where there were about 200 ''lectores'' as of 2010.
20 Jobs That Have Disappeared
, By Miranda Marquit, Main Street, thestreet.com, May 3, 2010.UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...
is considering designating the profession a form of " intangible cultural heritage".Montecristo
Montecristo, also Monte Cristo (, ) and formerly Oglasa ( grc, Ὠγλάσσα, Ōglássa), is an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea and part of the Tuscan Archipelago. Administratively it belongs to the municipality of Portoferraio in the province ...
'' brand of cigars derives its name for the fondness that cigar makers had for listening to ''The Count of Monte Cristo
''The Count of Monte Cristo'' (french: Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) is an adventure novel written by French author Alexandre Dumas (''père'') completed in 1844. It is one of the author's more popular works, along with '' The Three Musketeers''. L ...
''.
See also
*Proctor
Proctor (a variant of ''procurator'') is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another.
The title is used in England and some other English-speaking countries in three principal contexts:
* In law, a proctor is a historical class of lawye ...
References
{{Lutheran Divine Service
Latin words and phrases