Describir: Meaning in western architecture

  ______   _    _    __   _     _____     _  __     ___      _  _      ___    
 /_____// | || | || | || | ||  |  ___||  | |/ //   / _ \\   | \| ||   / _ \\  
 `____ `  | || | || | '--' ||  | ||__    | ' //   | / \ ||  |  ' ||  | / \ || 
 /___//   | \\_/ || | .--. ||  | ||__    | . \\   | \_/ ||  | .  ||  | \_/ || 
 `__ `     \____//  |_|| |_||  |_____||  |_|\_\\   \___//   |_|\_||   \___//  
 /_//       `---`   `-`  `-`   `-----`   `-` --`   `---`    `-` -`    `---`   
 `-`