Hail Mary Latin in the 6th century, Herbert Thurston, writing in the "Catholic Encyclopedia" concludes that "there is little or no trace of the Hail Mary as an accepted devotional formula before about 1050", (though a later pious tale attributed to Ildephonsus of Toledo (fl. 7th century) the use of the first part, namely the angel's greeting to Mary, without that of Elizabeth, as a prayer). All the evidence suggests that it took its rise from certain versicles and responsories occurring in the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which just at that time was coming into favour among the monastic
Hail Mary to Mary, originally written in Koine Greek. The opening word of greeting, , "chaíre", here translated "Hail", literally has the meaning "rejoice" or "be glad". This was the normal greeting in the language in which Saint Luke's Gospel is written and continues to be used in the same sense in Modern Greek. Accordingly, both "Hail" and "Rejoice" are valid English translations of the word ("Hail" reflecting the Latin translation, and "Rejoice" reflecting the original Greek). The word , ("kecharitōménē"), here translated as "full of grace", admits of various translations. Grammatically, the word is the feminine perfect passive participle of the