ABBREVIATIONS AND REFERENCE
WORDS
This Bulletin is published as a handy
reference booklet for the Masonic reader and
writer. It is not intended to be a complete
list of abbreviations used in Masonic lodges
and other bodies, nor of those used in
scholarly reference books.
However, this list can help the Brother
who
is engaged in some purposeful Masonic
reading; it explains the most common
abbreviations and reference words he may
encounter in his search for Masonic Light.
Brother Aemil Pouler, Format Editor of The
New Age, official publication of the Supreme
Council, 33, A.&A.S.R., Washington, D.C.,
compiled this list. He is a member of St.
John's Lodge No. 11 in the nation's capital.
This booklet will help to answer many of the
questions that come to an editor's desk. To
Brother Pouler, we express sincere
appreciation for making possible this useful
tool for Masonic enlightenment.
A.'. &A.'. Ancient and Accepted
A.'. & A.'.R.'.
Ancient and Accepted Rite
(as used in England)
A.'.A.'.S.'.R.'.
Ancient Accepted Scottish
Rite (used in Northern Jurisdiction, U.S.A.)
A.'. &
A.'.S.'.R.'. Ancient and Accepted
Scottish Rite (used in Southern Jurisdiction,
U.S.A.)
abr.
abridged; abridger
A.D. Anno
Domini; "in the year of the Lord."
Precedes numerals; often printed in small
caps; no space between.
A.'.Dep.'.
Anno Depositionis; "in the
Year of the Deposit," the date used in
Cryptic Masonry
A.'.F.'. &
A.'.M.'. Ancient Free and Accepted
Masons
A.'.F.'.M.'.
Ancient Freemasons
A.'.Inv.'.
Anno Inventionis; "in the Year
of the Discovery." The date used by Royal
Arch Masons
A.'.L.'. Anno
Lucis; "in the Year of Light."
The date used by Ancient Craft Masons.
A.'.L.'.G.'.D.'.A.'.D.'LU.'. A la Gloire du
Grand Architecte de l'Univers. To the Glory
of the Grand Architect of the Universe
(French). The usual caption of French Masonic
documents.
A.'L'O.'. A
l'Orient. At the East (French).
The seat of the Lodge.
A.'.M.'. Anno
Mundi; "in the Year of the
World." The date used in the Ancient and
Accepted Rite.
anon.
anonymous
ante before.
Cf. `supra.'
A.'.O.'. Anno
Ordinis; "in the Year of the
Order." The date used by Knights Templar.
A.Q.C. Ars
Quatuor Coronatorum. the
printed reports of Quatuor Coronati Lodge No.
2076 of London, England.
art., arts.
article, articles
A.'.Y.'.M.'.
Ancient York Mason
b. born.
Latin, "n."; German, "geb."
B.'. (or
Br.'.) Brother, or Bruder.
(German for Brother)
B.'.A.'.
Buisson Ardente. Burning Bush
B.'.B.'.
Burning Bush
B.C. Before
Christ. Follows numerals; often
printed in small caps; no space between.
bibliog.
bibliography, bibliographer,
bibliographical
biog.
biography, biographer, biographical
bk., bks.
book(s). Note that this
abbreviation (e.g., Bk. II of 2 bks.) saves
but one character.
C.
Constitution. Used to indicate
warranting authority of constituent lodges.
E.g., "E.C.,"I.C.," and "S.C." mean of
"English, Irish, or Scottish Constitution,"
i.e., "chartered by the Grand Lodges of
England, Ireland, or Scotland."
ca. (or c.) circa, "about." Used with
approximate dates; e.g., ca. 1776; "ca." is
preferable to "c." which can also mean
"chapter" or "copyright."
C.'.C.'.
Celestial Canopy
cf. confer;
"compare." Never use "cf." when
"see" is intended. German, "val."; Spanish,
"cir."
C.'.G.'.
Captain General, or Captain of the
Guard
C.'.H.'.
Captain of the Host
ch., chs.
chapter(s) (or chap., chaps.) col.,
cols.
column(s)
Comp.'.
Companion; designation of a member
of the Royal Arch
comp.
compiled, compiler
D.'. Deputy
(also District. See
D.'.D.'.G.'.M.'.)
d. died.
Latin, "ob." or "obit." German,
"gest."
D.'.D.'.G.'.M.'.
District Deputy Grand
Master (America). (See Dis.'.D.'.G.'.M.'. -
England)
D.'.G.'.B.'.A.'.W.'. "Der grosse
Baumeister aller Welten" (German); the Grand
Architect of all Worlds
D.'.G.'.G.'.H.'.P.'. Deputy General Grand
High Priest
D.'.G.'.H.'.P.'.
Deputy Grand High Priest
D.'.G.'.M.'.
Deputy Grand Master
Dis.'.D.'.G.'.M.'. District Deputy Grand
Master (England). (See D.'.D.'.G.'.M.'. -
America)
diss.
dissertation
D.'.Prov.'.Gr.'.M.'. Deputy Provincial
Grand Master
E.'. East,
the place of Light. Also, Eminent;
Excellent
E.'.A.'. (or
E.'.A.'.P.'.) Entered
Apprentice
E.'.C.'.
Excellent Companion (E.C. - "of
English Constitution")
Ec.'.
Ecossais (French); Scottish,
belonging to the Scottish Rite
ed., eds. (or
edd.) editor(s), edition(s),
edited by. Some presses prefer "edn." for
edition, "ed." for editor.
ed. cit.
editio citata; "edition cited"
e.g. exempli
gratia; "for example." Rarely
capitalized; no space between; preceded and
followed by comma. German, "z.B."
E.'.G.'.C.'.
Eminent Grand Commander
enl. enlarged
(as in "rev. and enl. ed.")
esp.
especially (as in "pp. 248-263, esp. p.
251")
et al. (never
et als.) et alii; "and
others"
et seq., seqq.
et sequens, sequenlia; "and
the following." But cf. "f., ff."
etc. (rarely &c.), "and so forth." Avoid
using in text. German, "usw."
E.'.V.'. Ere
Vulgaire (French); Vulgar Era;
Year of the Lord
ex., exs. (or
exx.) example(s)
f., ff. "and
the following (with a space,
after a numeral) page(s) or line(s)." But
exact references are preferable; e.g., "pp.
53-54" instead of "pp. 53 f.", "pp. 53-58
ff." (Some
presses, e.g., Harvard, prefer the
style "53f) - omitting the period.)
F.'. (plu.,
FF.%) Frere. Brother (French)
F.'.A.'.A.'.M.'.
Free And Accepted Masons
(This abbreviation used only by the Grand
Lodge of the District of Columbia.)
F. `. & A.'.M.'.
(F.'.A.'.M.'.) Free and
Accepted Masons
fac.
facsimile
fasc.
Fascicle
F.'.C.'.
Fellow-Craft
F.P.S. Fellow
of the Philalethes Society
fig., figs.
figure(s)
fl. floruit;
"flourished, reached greatest
development in influence"
F.'.M.'.
Freemason (old style). (French,
Franc Macon; German, Friemaurer)
fn. footnote.
Cf. "n."
fol., foil.
(or fo.) folio(s)
Fra.'. Frater
(Latin); brother (title of
address used by Knights Templar)
front.
frontispiece
G.'. Grand;
also, the symbol for Deity and
Geometry.
G.'.A.'.O.'.T.'.U.'. Grand Architect of
the Universe
G.'.A.'.S.'.
Grand Annual Sojourner
G.'.C.'.
Grand Chaplain; Grand Chapter;
Grand Council; Grand Commander; Grand Cross;
Grand Chancellor; Grand Conclave
G.'.D.'.
Grand Deacon
G.'.D.'.C.'.
Grand Director of Ceremonies
G.'.E.'.
Grand Encampment; Grant East
G.'.G.'.
Grand Geometrician; Grand
Generalissimo; Grand Guardian
G.'.G.'.C.'.
General Grand Chapter
G.'.G.'.H.'.P.'.
General Grand High Priest
G.'.H.'.P.'.
Grand High Priest
G.'.J.'.W.'.
Grand Junior Warden (also
J.'.G.'.W.'.)
G.'.L.'.
Grand Lodge; Grande Loge (French);
Grosse Loge (German)
G.'.M.'.
Grand Master
G.'.N.'.
Grand Nehemiah
G.'.O.'.
Grand Orient, Grand Organist
G.'.P.'.
Grand Pursuivant; Grand Priory;
Grand
Principal; Grand Preceptor; Grand
Patron, etc.
G.'.P.'.S.'.
Grand Principal Sojourner;
Grand Past Sojourner
Gr.'. (or
G.'.) Grand; Great
G.'.R.'.
Grand Registrar or Grand Recorder
G.'.R.'.A.'.C.'.
Grand Royal Arch Chapter
Gr.'.Comdr.'.
Grand Commander (Also, Sov.'.
Gr.'. Comdr.'.)
Gr.'.Eq.'.
Grand Equerry
Gr.'.M.'. of
Cer.'. Grand Master of
Ceremonies
Gr.'.Min.'.
of State Grand Minister of
State
Gr.'.Organist
Grand Organist (Also,
G.'.O.'.)
Gr.'.Prior
Grand Prior (Also, Ven.'.Gr.'.
Prior.'.)
Gr.'.Sec.'.
(or G.'.S.'.) Grand Secretary
Gr.'.Sec.'.Genl.'. Grand Secretary General
G.'.S.'.W.'.
Grand Senior Warden (also,
S.'. G.'. W.'.)
Gr.'.St.'.Bearer. (or G.'.S.'.B.'.) Grand
Standard Bearer
Gr.'. Steward
Grand Steward (Also, G.'.
Std.'.)
Gr.'.Sw.'.
Bearer (or G.'.S.'.B.'.) Grand
Sword Bearer
Gr.'.Treas.'.
Grand Treasurer (Also,
G.'.T.'.)
Gr.'.Treas.'.Genl.'. Grand Treasurer
General
G.'.S.'.
Grand Scribe; Grand Secretary
(Grand Secretary is also Gr.'.Sec.'.)
G.'.S.'.B.'.
Grand Sword Bearer; Grand
Standard Bearer (also, Gr.'.Sw.'.Bearer and
Gr.'.St.'.Bearer)
G.'.T.'.
Grand Treasurer (Also, Gr.'.
Treas.'.); Grand Tiler
G.'.W.'.
Grand Warden
G.W.M.N.M.A.
The George Washington Masonic
National Memorial Association
H.'.A.'.B.'.
Hiram Abif
H.'.E.'. Holy
Empire
hist.
history, historical, historian
H.'.K.'.T.'.
Hiram, King of Tyre
H.L.O.H.
Honorary Legion of Honor
H.'.P.'. High
Priest
H.'.R.'.D.'.M.'.
Heredom
ibid.
(sometimes ib.) ibidem, "in the
same place," i.e., the single title cited in
the note immediately preceding. Not to be
introduced by "in." German, "ebd."
idem (no period; sometimes id.), "the same"
(person)
i.e. id est,
"that is." Rarely
capitalized; no space between; preceded and
followed by comma. German, "d.h."
I.'.G.'.H.'.
Inspector General Honorary
Ill.'.
Illustrious
illus.
illustrated, illustrator,
illustration(s)
infra (not
inf.) "below." Cf. "post" and
see "supra." Since the English word has the
same number of letters, the use of the Latin
may be thought affectation. Many editors
consider "see below (or above)" preferable,
although others, particularly editors of
classical journals, warn that "above" and
"below" can occasionally be mistaken for
references to the physical position of
objects in an illustration.
I.'.H.'.S.'.V.'.
In hoc signo vinces. "By
this sign thou shalt conquer."
I.'.N.'.R.'.I.'.
lesus Nazarenus, Rex
ludaeorum (Latin). Jesus of Nazareth, King of
the Jews
introd.
introduction; ("by" understood in
context.)
I.'.P.'.M.'.
Immediate Past Master
(English)
I.'.T.'.N.'.O.'.T.'.G.'.A.'.O.'.T.'.U.'.
In the Name of the Great Architect of the
Universe. Often forming the caption of
Masonic documents.
J.'.D.'.
Junior Deacon
J.'.W.'.
Junior Warden
K.'. King
K.'.C.'.C.'.H.'.
Knight Commander of the
Court of Honor
K--H.'.
Kadosh, Knight of Kadosh
K.'.H.'.S.'.
Knight of the Holy Sepulcher
K.'.M.'.
Knight of Malta
K.'.R.'.C.'.
Knight of the Red (or Rosy)
Cross
K.'.S.'. King
Solomon
K.'.T.'.
Knight(s) Templar
l., ll.
line(s). It is often advisable to
indicate clearly in the margin that the
letter l and not Arabic l or ll is intended.
Better still, spell it out or (for poetry)
use "vs."
L.'. (plu.
LL.'.) Lodge
lang., langs.
language(s)
loc. cit.
(not l.c.) Loco citato, "in the
place (passage) cited," i.e., in the same
passage referred to in a recent note. Never
follow "loc. cit." with a page number.
German, "a.a.O."
L.O.H. Legion
of Honor
L.'.R.'.
London Rank. A distinction
introduced in England in 1908.
M.'. Mason;
Master
M.'.C.'.
Middle Chamber; Master of
Ceremonies; Mystic Circle
M.'.E.'. Most
Eminent; Most Excellent
M.'.E.'.G.'.H.'.P.'. Most Excellent Grand
High Priest
M.'.E.'.G.'.M.'.
Most Eminent Grand Master
(of Knights Templar)
M.'.L.'. Mere
Loge (French); Mother Lodge
M.'.M.'.
Master Mason; Mark Master; Mois
Maconnique
(French); Masonic Month. March is
the first Masonic month among French Masons.
M.'.P.'.S.'.
Most Puissant Sovereign
M.P.S. Member
of the Philalethes Society
MS, MSS
manuscript(s), (as "the many MSS of
Chaucer"). But spell MS. with a period when
referring to a specific manuscript, as
"Bodleian MS. Tanner 43." (M.S. is "Master of
Science.")
M.S.A.
Masonic Service Association;
Meritorious
Service Award (in Northern
Jurisdiction, A.'.A.'.S.'.R.'.)
M.'.W.' .
Most Worshipful
M.'.W.'.S.'.
Most Wise Sovereign
n., nn.
note(s), (as "p. 56, n. 3").
Commonly used instead of "fn."; occasionally
spelled "p. 56n", (italicized, no period).
German, "Anm."
N.B. nota
bene; "take notice, mark well"
n.d. no date,
i.e., in a book's imprint.
German, "o.J."; French, "s.d."; Spanish,
"s.f."
no., nos.
number(s). Cf. "numb."
n.p. no
place, i.e., of publication; German,
"o.O."; French, and Spanish "s.l."
N.P.D. (or
NPD) non-payment of dues
N.S. New
Series, New Style (of dating since
1752)
numb.
numbered
O.'. (or
Or.'.) Orient; Orator
OB.'.
Obligation
obs. obsolete
op. cit. (not
o. c.) opere citato; "in the
work cited." This is the most abused of
scholarly abbreviations. Some journals and
presses never use it. Properly used in citing
a passage on a different page (cf. "loc.
cit.") of a work recently noted, but in such
cases the author's name alone may suffice, or
his name and a short title may be clearer.
Spanish, "obra cit."
O.S. Old
Series, Original Series, Old Style
(of dating before 1752)
P.'. Past;
Prefect; Prelate; Prior
p., pp.
page(s). Avoid capitalizing. Write
"Pages" instead of "Pp." Omit if volume
number precedes. German, "S."; Spanish,
`pag., pags."
par., pars.
paragraph(s)
passim
"throughout the work, here there";
(as pp. 78, 133, et passim")
per cent (no
period)
P.'.G.'.M.'.
Past Grand Master
philol.
philological
philos.
philosophical
pl., pls.
plate(s)
P.'.M.'. Past
Master
post "after".
Cf. "infra"
pref. preface
Pro G.'.M.'.
Pro Grand Master (England)
Prov.'.
Provincial
Prov.'.G.'.M.'.
Provincial Grand Master
P.'.S.'.
Principal Sojourner
pseud.
pseudonym
pt., pts.
part(s). Note that this
abbreviation saves but one character.
pub., pubs.
(or publ.) published,
publication(s)
q.v. quod
vide; "which see"
R.'.A.'.
Royal Arch
R.'.A.'.M.'.
Royal Arch Mason; Royal
Mariner
R.'.C.'. or
R.'.+.'. Rose Croix. Appended
to the signature of one having that degree.
R.'.E.'.
Right Eminent
reg.
registered
resp.
respectively (as "pp. 56, 17, 89, 6
resp.")
rev. review,
reviewed vision.
R.'.F.'.
Respectable Frere (French)
Worshipful Brother
R.'.L.'. or
R.'. Respectable Loge (French)
Worshipful Lodge
R.'.O.'.S.'.
Royal Order of Scotland
R.'.S.'.Y.'.C.'.S.'. Rosy Cross (in the
Royal Order of Scotland)
R.'. & S.
%M.'. Royal and Select Masters
R.'.W.'.
Right Worshipful
S.'. Scribe;
Sentinel; Seneschal
S.'.B.'.
Standard Bearer
S.'.C.'.
Supreme Council
sc. scene
scil.
scilicet; "namely, to wit"
sec., sees.
(or sect.) section(s)
ser. series
S.'.G.'.I.'.G.'.
Sovereign Grand Inspector
General
sic "thus,
so." Between square brackets when
used as an editorial interpolation;
otherwise, within parentheses. Avoid using
with an exclamation mark.
sig., sigs. (sigg.)
signature(s)
Soc.'.Ros.'.
Societas Rosicruciana;
Rosicrucian Society
S.'.P.'.R.'.S.'.
Sublime Prince of the
Royal Secret
S.'.S.'.
Sanctum Sanctorum or Holy of Holies
S.'.S.'.S.'.
Trois fois Salut (French).
Thrice greeting. A common caption to French
Masonic circulars or letters.
st. stanza
St. (or S.),
SS. Saint(s) (feminine, Ste.)
sup. supra;
"above." See "infra" for comment.
s.v. sub
verbo or voce; "under the word or
heading."
S.'.W.'.
Senior Warden
T.'. Tiler;
Treasurer
T.'.C.'.F.'.
Tres Chere Frere (French)
Very Dear Brother
Tr.'.
Treasurer
trans. (or
tr.) translator, translation,
translated
("by" understood in context)
U.D. Under
Dispensation: empowered to work
Masonically, but as yet not warranted or
constituted.
v. vide;
"see." German, "s."
v., vv. (or
vs., vss.) verse(s)
V.'. (or Ven.'.)
Venerable (French).
Worshipful
V.'.D.'.B.'.
Very Dear Brother
Ven.'.Gr.'.Prior Venerable Grand Prior
Ven.'.Lt.'.Gr.'.Comdr.'. Venerable Lieutenant
Grand Commander
viz. (with or
without a period; usage varies)
videlicet;
"namely"
V.'.L.'.
Vraie lumiere (French). True light
vol., vols.
volume(s) (as "Vol. II of 3
vols.") Omit "Vol." and "p." when both items
are supplied. Most journals and presses avoid
`v' for volume since it may be mistaken for a
Roman numeral. German, "Bd., Bde."; Spanish,
"t."
vs. versus;
"against"; (also, verse)
V.'.S.'.L.'.
Volume of the Sacred Law
V.'.W.'. Very
Worshipful
W.'`.
Worshipful
W.'.M.'.
Worshipful Master, German Wurdiger
Meister
(The triangle of dots (.'.) used to indicate
Masonic abbreviations is an "ancient custom,"
but it is not consistently or universally
followed.)
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