In medieval Christian usage, the parlour was one of two rooms in a monastery. The 'outer parlour' was the room where the monks or nuns could meet a visitor and do business with people from outside the monastery. It was generally in the west range of the buildings of the cloister, close to the main entrance. The 'inner parlour' was found off the cloister, next to the chapter house in the east range of the monastery. Most religious orders wanted silence in the cloister, which was the place where the monks studied. The inner parlour was a place where the monks could talk without disturbing the others in the cloister.