Waldenses

[wawl-den-seez, wol-]

plural noun

1. the members of a Christian sect that arose after 1170 in southern France under the leadership of Pierre Waldo, a merchant of Lyons, and joined the Reformation in the 16th century.

Waldenses

/ wɒlˈdɛnsiːz, wɒlˈdɛnsɪən /

plural noun

1. Also called: Vaudois. the members of a small sect founded as a reform movement within the Roman Catholic Church by Peter Waldo, a merchant of Lyons in the late 12th century, which in the 16th century joined the Reformation movement

Other Word Forms

• Waldensian noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of Waldenses¹

First recorded in 1400–50; plural of Middle English Waldensis, from Medieval Latin, after Pierre Waldo; -ensis