publican
noun
[ ˈpʌblɪk(ə)n ]
• a person who owns or manages a pub.
• (in ancient Roman and biblical times) a collector or farmer of taxes.
• "publicans and sinners"
Origin:
Middle English (in publican (sense 2)): from Old French publicain, from Latin publicanus, from publicum ‘public revenue’, neuter (used as a noun) of publicus ‘of the people’. publican (sense 1) dates from the early 18th century.
