Definition of: pallium

(pal′ē·əm) noun plural ·li·a (-ē·ə)
1. A himation, the distinctive ancient Greek mantle, later adopted by the Romans as a Hellenism.
2. A vestment of the pope, archbishops, and metropolitans in the Roman Catholic Church, and of patriarchs in the Eastern Church; a pall. The Roman pallium is a yokelike band of white wool, with pendants on the breast and back, and is adorned with crosses.
3. Zool. The mantle of a brachiopod, mollusk, or bird.
4. Anat. The brain mantle or cerebral cortex, which is developed from the anterior vesicle, including the central white substance and the cortical gray. [<L]