Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A volume compiled as a tribute, especially to a scholar, consisting of articles or essays relating to the honoree's work or interests.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A tribute or memorial volume filled with essays and articles by admirers in memory of a colleague. A comparable book presented posthumously is called a Gedenkschrift ("memorial publication").

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[German : Fest, festival; see fest + Schrift, writing (from Middle High German schrift, from Old High German scrift, from scrīban, to write, from Latin scrībere; see skrībh- in Indo-European roots).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Borrowing from German Festschrift, from Fest (“festival, celebration”) +‎ Schrift (“writing, something written”), the latter from Middle High German schrift, from Old High German scrift, from the Middle High German infinitive schrîben (compare schreiben), from Latin scribere, from Proto-Indo-European *skreybʰ-

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  • A volume of essays in tribute to someone.

    October 3, 2007