Ismaʿilian

[ is-mey-il-ee-uhn ]

noun

, Islam.

1. a member of the Ismaʿiliya sect.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Ismaʿilian¹

First recorded in 1830–40; from Arabic ismāʿīlī, equivalent to Ismāʿīl (died a.d. 760), elder son of the imam Jaʿfar, but disinherited by his father + -ī a suffix indicating relationship or origin) + -an