Chandeliers have a long history and so that means they have a ton of specialized terms that do along with. Here’s a little list I complied to help you understand what’s what in the chandelier world.

Adam style: This is an English (generally) neoclassical style chandelier — light, airy with elegant lines.

Arm: The candle or light-bearing part of a chandelier. It is also called a “branch”.

Arm Plate: The metal block on the stem, into which the arms slot. These days some chandeliers use different joinery.

Bag: Usually associated with early American crystal chandeliers and Regency style crystal chandeliers, a bag is a grouping of crystal drops that hang from a circular frame and loop back into the center underneath.

Baluster: A molded stem forming the axis of a chandelier, with alternating narrow and bulbous parts of varying widths.

Bead: A glass drop with a hole drilled through it.

Bobeche: A plate below the candle, designed to catch dripping wax. Also called a drip pan.

Branch: Another name for the light-bearing part of a chandelier, also called an “arm”.

Candelabra: Candelabras are branched candlesticks, a chandelier is never a candelabra.

Candlebeam A cross made from two wooden beams with one or more spikes at each end for securing candles.

Candle nozzle: The small cup into which the end of the candle is placed.

Canopy: An inverted shallow dish at the top of a chandelier from which groups of beads are often suspended, giving added style. Look at any antique chandelier to see what I mean.

Cage: An arrangement where the central stem, supporting arms and decorations are replaced by a metal structure leaving the center clear for candles.

Crown: A circular chandelier similar to a crown, usually made of gilded metal. They tend to include upright decorative elements.

Crystal: Glass with added lead. Known for clarity, resonance and softness, crystal is often used in chandeliers. It is part of the classic beauty of chandelier light. Also known as lead crystal.

Drip Pan: The pan fitted just below the candle, designed to catch wax. Know also as a “bobeche”.

Drop: A small piece of glass usually cut into one of many shapes and drilled at one end so that it can be hung from the chandelier. A chain drop is drilled at both ends so that a series can be hung together to form a necklace or “festoon”.

Dutch: Also known as Flemish, a style of brass chandelier with a bulbous baluster and arms curving down around a low hung ball.

Festoon: An arrangement of glass drops or beads.

Finial: The final piece at the very bottom of the stem. Some Venetian glass chandeliers have little finials hanging from glass rings on the arms.

Hoop: A circular metal support, usually on a Regency style chandelier. Also known as a ring.

Molded: The process by which a glass piece is shaped by being blown into a mold (rather than being cut).

Neoclassical Chandelier: Glass chandelier featuring many arms, spires and strings of beads.

Prism: A straight, many sided “drop”.

Quoizel Chandelier: A multi-generational lighting manufacturer, known for their chandeliers which capture 20th Century craftsmanship and 21st Century quality.

Regency Chandelier: A larger chandelier with many elements. A bag, with concentric rings of pointed glass, forms a “waterfall” beneath. The stem is completely hidden.

Soda Glass: A type of glass used in Venetian glass chandeliers. Soda glass remains malleable for longer when heated so it can be shaped into curving leaves and flowers.

Spire: A tall spike of glass to which arms and decorative elements may be attached, made from wood, metal or glass.

Venetian: A chandelier from the island of Murano, Venice but usually used to describe any chandelier in Venetian style.

Waterfall Concentric rings of icicle drops suspended beneath the hoop.

This doesn’t help you buy a chandelier, but it might help you understand what you’re getting for your money. Whether it is the chandelier’s lighting, all soft and diffuse, or the look of it even when not lit, knowing what to call things will help. Happy shopping.