hagiography

noun hagiographies

1. uncountable The study of saints and the documentation of their lives. The second half of the eleventh century saw a notable surge of interest in hagiography throughout England, which meant that many of the Anglo-Saxon saints of earlier eras were furnished, often for the first time, with a Latin Vita.
2. countable A biography of a saint.
3. broadly, countable A biography which expresses reverence and respect for its subject. Churchill revisionism, of course, is almost as much of a cottage industry as Churchill hagiography.
4. countable, derogatory, uncountable A biography which is uncritically supportive of its subject, often including embellishments or propaganda. For an obsequious hagiography of [William] Byrd, see L. Wright 1940. For a more critical assessment, see Lockridge 1987, 1992.