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Basilica
Originally the court of the Athenian archon, called the
basileus, who used to give judgment in the stoa basilike. At
Rome these courts of justice had their nave, aisles, porticoes, and
tribunals; so that when used for Christian worship very little
alteration was needed. The church of St. John Lateran at Rome was an
ancient basilica.
Source: Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, E. Cobham Brewer, 1894 More on Basilica from Infoplease:
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