Ecclesiastical or Church Latin

Ecclesiastical or Church Latin is the version of Latin that was used for centuries in the services of the Roman Catholic Church. (It was not until after the Second Vatican Council of 1962-1965 that Latin ceased to be the exclusive language of all normal services in that church.) It is also the language of the Vulgate, i.e., the Latin translation of the Bible which was undertaken by St. Jerome (340-420) in the fourth century and has provided texts for much sacred music in the Christian tradition.

For information about the pronunciation of Ecclesiastical or Church Latin see Pronunciation of Ecclesiastical or Church Latin.