The Breviary reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Apr-2004
(provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Breviary

Have you considered sponsoring a child
Breviary (from Latin brevis - "short") is a liturgical book containing the public or canonical prayers, hymns, and notation for everyday use, especially for priests. It was often richly decorated with initials and miniature illustrations.

Breviaries are commonly used in the Liturgy of the Hours prayer ritual.

The word breviary also means an abridged version of a text, a brief account or a summary of some subject.