A cordwainer (/ˈkɔːrdˌweɪnər/) is a shoemaker who makes new shoes from new leather. The cordwainer's trade can be contrasted with the cobbler's trade, according to a tradition in Britain that restricted cobblers to repairing shoes.[1] This usage distinction is not universally observed, as the word cobbler is widely used for tradespersons who make or repair shoes.[2][3][4]
The Oxford English Dictionary[5] says that the word cordwainer is archaic, "still used in the names of guilds, for example, the Cordwainers' Company"; but its definition of cobbler mentions only mending,[5] reflecting the older distinction. Play 14 of the Chester Mystery Plays was presented by the guild of corvisors, known to mean shoemakers.[6][7]
- ^ "What is a Cordwainer?". The Honourable Cordwainers’ Company. Retrieved 19 Oct 2015.
- ^ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, archived from the original on 2015-09-25, retrieved 2015-10-31.
- ^ Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, archived from the original on 2020-10-10, retrieved 2015-10-31.
- ^ Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, archived from the original on 2020-05-25, retrieved 2015-10-31.
- ^ a b Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford Dictionaries Online, Oxford University Press, archived from the original on May 16, 2001.
- ^ The Chester Plays
- ^ This glossary defines corvisor or corvysor as shoemaker