Hussites

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Followers of the Czech religious reformer Jan Hus in the 15th century who challenged the authority of the Roman Catholic Church
2. Members of a medieval Christian movement in Bohemia that arose from the teachings of Jan Hus and sought church reform
3. Adherents to the religious doctrines and reforms promoted by Jan Hus during the Hussite Wars in 15th-century Bohemia

Etymology: The Hussites were followers of Jan Hus, the Bohemian priest and reformer who was burned at the stake at the Council of Constance in 1415. Their name comes from his, with the suffix "-ite" attached, a pattern English borrowed from Greek through Latin and French. The suffix, from Ancient Greek "-ītēs", was used to mark a person belonging to or following someone or something, so a Hussite is simply a follower of Hus. The movement that bore the name grew out of his execution. Hus had criticised the wealth of the church and the sale of indulgences, and after his death his supporters in Bohemia fought a series of wars against the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic church, which lasted into the 1430s. The label was first applied by their opponents, and it stuck as the standard term for the group in English.