why are church pews called pews? where did the name come from?

Question

my preacher asked me to find out

Answer 1

Same source as podium. In latin podia is the plural form for the singular podium. This went into Middle French as puie refering to the balcony, And that transfered into Middle English as puwe refering to the seating. So, just as the message goes from the one at the podium to the one in the pew, so too the word went from the podium to the pew.

Answer 2

Here what I found out.

In the 14th century the "pews" as we know them were introduced, but were not popularized into church architecture until the 15th century. Wood benches with backs replaced stone seats. Remember, at this time period, the Reformation was happening where the pulpit was introduced as the focal point of church architecture - so the pews then became the places where people took seats to focus on the pulpit and the sermon which was shaped into a certain more formal format at the time of Reformation. It was so people of the Reformation and what was happening could sit and listen to a preacher. They didn't have Bibles on their own, they didn't read for the most part, so in response to what was going on culturally in the early Reformation period they made rows of seats to sit and listen to someone preach.

Answer 3

Etymology: Middle English pewe, from Middle French dialect (Picardy) puie balustrade, from Latin podia, plural of podium parapet, podium, from Greek podion base, diminutive of pod-, pous foot -- more at FOOT
1 : a compartment in the auditorium of a church providing seats for several persons

Answer 4

Middle English pewe, from Middle French dialect (Picardy) puie balustrade, from Latin podia, plural of podium parapet, podium, from Greek podion base, diminutive of pod-, pous foot — more at FOOT

From the 14th century

Answer 5

well there was this lady who had a .lets say problem. and she would sometimes fart on the bench's in church and people would say PEW, what a smell. and it caught on,this is the most logical explanation i can come up with,

ha ha ha

Answer 6

From the movie.."Yellow Beard"...a Mr. Pew.
.

Answer 7

Confucius say:
Man who pass gas in church, sit in his own pew.

: )

Answer 8

It's from the Old French - "puie or "puy" - meaning "balcony, elevation," from Latin "podia, pl. of podium "elevated place," - also "balcony in a Roman theater"

Answer 9

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pew