sebastianist

Etymology

From Sebastian + -ist.

sebastianist means A believer in Sebastianism. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.

Why “sebastianist” is a great word

SEBASTIANIST — [Noun] An adherent of Sebastianism, the Portuguese messianic belief that King Sebastian I, who disappeared at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir in 1578, will one day return to redeem the nation. From the proper name Sebastian (referring to King Sebastian I of Portugal) + the English suffix -ist (denoting an adherent of a doctrine). Unlike a messianist, who awaits a prophesied savior, or a millenarian, who anticipates a broad cosmic renewal, the Sebastianist is defined by a precise, historical longing for a royal ghost. It is the patient scanning of the western horizon from a windswept cliff, the careful preservation of an empty throne in a dusty hall, and the collective habit of hearing a ghostly trumpet in every crisis—the stubborn conviction that national salvation sleeps not in the future, but in the unaccounted past.

noun

A believer in Sebastianism.