Note 108 — IX CORNISH HERMITS

Hermit (Gr. Eremites, L. Heremita), one who lives in the desert; Anchorite (Gr. Anachoretes, L. Anchorita), one withdrawn from the world; Monk (Gr. Monachos, L. Monachus), one who dwells alone. The difference between a hermit and an anchorite was that the former was free to move from place to place, the latter was confined. The monk who had at first been a solitary soon became a member of an ordered and celibate community.

It is curious to notice that the impulse which created the hermit produced the monastery, and that, at a later date, the monastery incidentally produced the hermit.