† crosecrocen.

Etymology: < Old French croce (pronounced /krɔtsə/), in Roland 11th cent.; from 14th cent. onward crosse ; corresponding to Provençal crossa , Old Spanish croza , Italian croccia < late Latin type *croccia , croccea , a derivative of late Latin *croccus , Italian crocco , in French croc crook, hook. (See accroach v.) Compare the various medieval Latin forms for ‘pastoral crook’ or ‘episcopal staff’ in Du Cange, croca , croqua , crocea , crocia , croccia , crochia , crossa , crossea . In English there was a doublet croche n.¹ from Norman French. These words are quite distinct from Latin crux cross n., and its derivatives, with which they have never been confused in any Romanic language: thus Old French croce and crois (cruiz ), modern French crosse and croix , Provençal crossa and crotz , Old Spanish croza and cruz , Italian cròccia and cróce , medieval Latin croccia and crux . In Middle English also, croce was quite distinct fromcrois , croys , croyce ; but after the Norse form of the latter word, cros , cross n., prevailed, there was a tendency for croce and cross to run together as crosse, which resulted in the obsolescence of croce. (See copious examples by Rev. J. T. Fowler in Archaeologia LII.)