Lollard

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A follower of the English reformer John Wycliffe who opposed church doctrine in medieval England ; a dissenting believer labelled heretical by the established church
2. An adherent of the religious movement started by John Wycliffe in fourteenth-century England ; someone whose beliefs the church condemned as heretical
3. A medieval English disciple of John Wycliffe who challenged clerical authority ; a religious dissenter branded a heretic by the authorities of the day

Etymology: Followers of John Wycliffe, the 14th-century English theologian who argued that scripture should be read in the vernacular, were called Lollards, and the name was originally a jeer. Its most likely source is Middle Dutch "lollen," meaning "to mumble," a dig at the supposed vagueness or muttering of people who prayed and preached in English rather than Latin. Some people in the period may have heard it as a pun on the Dutch "lollaert," used for a idle or babbling person. Other explanations have been proposed, and the word's exact origin remains uncertain. The name stuck anyway. Opponents used it as a term of abuse, and the movement came to be known by it, so a word meant to mock a group of religious reformers ended up as their permanent label.