Abbey of Monte Cassino, a famous monastery and the mother house of the Order of Saint Benedict.

The Syrian-orthodox monastery Mor Gabriel, founded in 397.

Asta Nørregaard: Christmas Night Mass celebrated in a French Nunnery (1889)

Monasteries are places where monks live. Although the word "monastery" is sometimes used for a place where nuns live, nuns usually live in a convent or nunnery. The word abbey (from the Syriac/Aramaic word abba: father) is also used for a Christian monastery or convent. The monk in charge of an abbey is called an abbot; the nun in charge of an abbey is an abbess.