Webster's English Dictionary

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parish

par.ish \'par-ish\ n [ME parisshe, fr. MF parroche, fr. LL parochia, fr. 
   LGk pa]roikia, fr. paroikos Christian, fr. Gk, stranger, fr. para- + oikos 
   house - more at VICINITY 1a1: the ecclesiastical unit of area committed to 
   one pastor  1a2: the residents of such area  Brit  1b: a subdivision of a 
   county often coinciding with an original ecclesiasti cal parish and 
   constituting the unit of local government 2: a local church community 
   composed of the members or constituents of a Pr otestant church 3: a civil 
   division of the state of Louisiana corresponding to a county in  other 
   states