| The word grial, as it is earliest spelled, appears
to be an Old French adaptation of the Latin gradalis,
meaning a dish brought to the table in different stages
of a meal. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, after
the cycle of Grail romances was well established, late
medieval writers came up with a false etymology for
sangréal, an alternative name for "Holy Grail."
In Old
French, san graal or san gréal means "Holy Grail" and
sang réal means "royal blood"; later writers played on
this pun. Since then, "Sangreal" is sometimes employed
to lend a medievalizing air in referring to the Holy
Grail. This connection with royal blood bore fruit in a
modern bestseller linking many historical conspiracy
theories
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