Waldenses

American  

[wawl-den-seez, wol-] / wɔlˈdɛn siz, wɒl- /

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 British  

/ 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

Derived Forms

• Waldensian
  noun
• Waldensian
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Waldenses

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

Example Sentences

To Waldenses in the U. S. last week came good news from Italy.

From Time Magazine Archive

For nearly seven centuries the Waldenses, the "slaughtered saints" of Milton's sonnet, tenaciously weathered persecution in the valleys of the Cottian Alps.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Waldenses took the reproof kindly, promised amendment, and in a short time the two sects united and formed one body.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles

Finally they turned to the Waldenses, of whom there was a community on the Austrian border.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles

Evidently the spirit of the persecuted saints was unbroken, and it was soon after put to the test in the valley of the Po, where whole villages were found to consist of Waldenses.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles