Originally meant a female courtier, a woman of a royal or noble court. By the
Renaissance, the connotations of the word had acquired that of the mistress or concubine of a king or a noble.
Now it generally means a high-class
prostitute whose clients are wealthy men.
"
Christian, I'm a courtesan; I'm paid to make men believe what they want to believe." -Satine,
Moulin RougeThaïs, Empress Theodora, Diane de Poitiers, Mary Boleyn,
Anne Boleyn, Madame du Pompadour, Marie Duplessis, and Mata Hari are but a few of many famous courtesans.