A large flatfish that lives in the ocean and is commonly eaten as food.
From Middle English 'halibut,' from 'haly' (holy) + 'but' (flatfish). Named 'holy fish' because it was eaten on holy days and during Lent in medieval Europe.
Halibut is literally the 'holy fish' because medieval Catholics ate it during Lenten fasts when meat was forbidden—so the name reveals what medieval people valued: fish worthy of religious occasions.
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