Hood (2)
Hood (Saxon hod; comp. German hut, hat), borrowed from the Roman cuculus, is (1.) the cowl of a monk. (2.) In England, an ornamental fold that hangs down the back of a graduate to mark his degree. This part of the dress was formerly not intended for distinction and ornament, but for use. It was generally fastened to the back of the cope or other vesture, and in case of rain or cold was drawn over the head. In the universities the hoods of the graduates were made to signify their degrees by varying the colors and materials. By the fifty-eighth canon of the Church of England "every minister saying the public prayers, or ministering the sacraments, or other rites of the Church, if they are graduates, shall wear upon their surplices, at such times, such hoods as by the orders of the universities are agreeable to their degrees." — Hook, Church Dictionary, s.5.; Wheatly, Book of Common Prayer, p. 102, 103.