Rota Romana
Preserved but no longer current.
A Roman Catholic ecclesias- tical court composed of auditors under the presidency of a dean, who hear appeals and adjudicate when a conflict of rights occurs. The name is said to allude to the wheel-like (Lat. rota, wheel) plan of the room in which the court used to sit.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Rota Romana” mean?
A Roman Catholic ecclesias- tical court composed of auditors under the presidency of a dean, who hear appeals and adjudicate when a conflict of rights occurs. The name is said to allude to the wheel-like (Lat. rota, wheel) plan of the room in which the court used to sit.
Is “Rota Romana” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.