Evensong in York Minster, looking down the nave from beside the main altar; notice the choir arrangement into decani or Dean's side (as seen here, the left side) and cantoris or Cantor's side (here, the right side).
Stalls assigned to Decanus (left) and Praecentor (right) at Lincoln Cathedrals's St Hugh's Choir

Decani (/dɪˈkeɪnaɪ/; Latin: 'of the dean') is the side of a church choir occupied by the Dean.[1] In English churches, this is typically the choir stalls on the south side of the chancel. The opposite side is known as Cantoris.[2]

The association of the Dean with the south side has propagated from the Sarum (now Salisbury Cathedral) liturgical norm, a practice that then propagated through pre-Reformation England and Wales.[3] There are some notable exceptions in the monastic cathedrals, where the senior cleric under the bishop was the prior; he often sat on the liturgical north.[3] Hence, in Durham Cathedral, Ely Cathedral, St Davids Cathedral, Carlisle Cathedral, and Southwell Minster, decani is on the north.

See also

References

  1. ^ Latham, Alison (2002). The Oxford Companion to Music. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 345. ISBN 978-0-19-866212-9.
  2. ^ "Decani vc. Cantoris". The Church Times. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  3. ^ a b Hughes, Gareth (19 May 2016). "Pass Decani on the Gospel Side: and other adventures in spiritual choreography". Ad Fontes. Retrieved 14 June 2016.


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