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Diakonissa

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:''This is an article about the wife of a deacon. If you are looking for a female in clerical orders, see [[Deaconess]].
'''''Diakonissa''''' is a Greek title of honor that is used to refer to a [[deacon|deacon's]] wife. It is derived from ''diakonos''—the Greek word for ''deacon'' (literally, "server"). There does not currently seem to be any standard English equivalent, so most English-speaking Orthodox Christians will use the title most common in the old country churches from which their local family or parish finds its origin.
''Diakonissa'' was also the term used in the ancient Church for the order of [[deaconess]], a non-[[clergy|clerical]] order which saw to the care of women in the community.
==Other languages==
In Arabic, a deacon's wife is called ''Shamassy'' (derived from ''Shamas'', Arabic for "deacon"). The Romanian uses a derivative from the Greek term, ''Diaconiţă'', as does Serbian, ''Djakonitsa'' (pronounced ''jack-on-eet'-sa''). Other Slavic tradition traditions generally uses use the same word for a deacon's wife that is used for a [[presbytera|priest's wife]]: ''Matushka'' (Russian), ''Papadija'' (Serbian), ''Panimatushka'' (Ukrainian), etc. ==See also==*[[Presbytera]]*[[Ordination of Women]] ==External link==*[http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/clergy_etiquette.aspx Clergy Etiquette] 
==See Also==
* [[Presbytera]]
[[Category:Church Life]]
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