Word Study
essene
CIDE DICTIONARY
essene, n. [Gr. , lit., physicians, because they practiced medicine, fr. Chald āsayā to heal, cf. Heb. asā.].
One of a sect among the Jews in the time of our Savior, remarkable for their strictness and abstinence. [1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
essene, n. a member of an ancient Jewish ascetic sect living communally.
Etymology
L pl. Esseni f. Gk pl. Essenoi
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