COPIATA, under the western empire, a grave-digger. In the first ages of the church there were clerks destined for this employment. In the year 357, Constantine made a law in favour of the priests copiate, i. e. of those who had the care of interments; whereby he exempts them from the usual contribution which all other traders paid. It was under him also that they first began to be called copiate, q. d. clerks destined for bodily labour, from copio, or scindo, scido, ferio. "I cut, beat," &c. Before that time they were called decani and ledicarii; perhaps because they were divided by decads or tens, each whereof had a bier or litter for the carriage of the dead bodies. Their place among the clerks was the next in order before the chantors.