Xenodochium

In the early Middle Ages, a xenodochium or xenodoch(e)ion (from Ancient Greek ξενοδοχεῖον, ksenodokheion; place for strangers, inn, guesthouse) was a type of hostel or hospital, usually specifically for foreigners or pilgrims, but the term could refer to charitable institutions in general. Xenodochia were more common than institutions of a more specific nature, such as the gerocomium (a place for the old), nosocomium (for the sick) and orphanotrophium (for orphans). A hospital for victims of plague was called a xenodochium pestiferorum (guesthouse of the plague-carriers).

Sources

• Dey, Hendrik W. (2008). "Diaconiae, Xenodochia, Hospitalia and Monasteries: ‘Social Security’ and the Meaning of Monasticism in Early Medieval Rome". Early Medieval Europe 16 (4): 398–422. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0254.2008.00236.x.