tenebra

Tenebra is a Latin noun meaning darkness or shadows. In classical Latin the standard word is tenebrae (plural); the singular tenebra occurs but is uncommon outside certain contexts. The term has influenced modern languages and religious vocabulary; related adjectives include tenebrosus (dark, shadowy) and the English loanword tenebrous.

Tenebrae is best known today as the name of a Western Christian liturgical service observed during Holy Week. In Catholic, Anglican, and some Lutheran rites, Tenebrae features a sequence of psalms and readings, with candles gradually extinguished to produce increasing darkness, and a final bell or noise signifying the closing of the day.

In broader culture, tenebra and tenebrae are frequently used in literature, music, and media to evoke night, mystery, and the supernatural. The word often appears as a title or as a proper name for places, realms, or characters meant to symbolize darkness or danger.

The term continues to appear in scholarly and religious contexts, where it is distinguished from more general words for darkness by its literary and liturgical associations.