illuminatus

Illuminatus is a Latin adjective and noun meaning "enlightened" or "illuminated," formed from the verb illuminare ("to illuminate" or "to enlighten"). In classical Latin it functions as a past participle, used to describe a person or thing that has been illuminated. In English, the form illuminatus is generally encountered in quotations or in esoteric, literary, or pseudo-Latin contexts rather than as a common everyday term.

The term is widely recognized in modern popular culture from the 1975 novel Illuminatus! by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson. The work, and its subsequent trilogy, blends conspiracy theory, occultism, and counterculture, and it helped popularize the association of "illuminatus" with hidden or enlightened knowledge and with the fictional secret society often linked to the Illuminati in contemporary mythos. Since then, the word has appeared in various works of fiction and in discussions of occult or esoteric traditions, sometimes as a stylized identifier for members or symbols of enlightenment.

In scholarly or historical usage, illuminatus may appear in Latin phrases or in titles to denote someone considered enlightened. It is distinct from, but closely related to, "Illuminati," the name of various secret societies associated with Enlightenment-era speculation. The modern English usage remains largely literary or cultural rather than a formal designation, and the term is most often encountered in discussions of literature, occultism, or popular culture.