brahmin

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French bramine, from obsolete Portuguese bramine, from Sanskrit ब्राह्मण (brā́hmaṇa); modern French brahmane, Portuguese brâmane are readjusted after Sanskrit. Doublet of Brahmana.

noun

1. A member of the Hindu priestly caste, one of the four varnas or social groups based on occupation in ancient Hindu society.
2. One who has realized or attempts to realize Brahman, i.e. God or supreme knowledge.
3. A scholar, teacher, priest, intellectual, researcher, scientist, knowledge-seeker, or knowledge worker.
4. (chiefly US, capitalized) A member of a social and cultural elite, especially in the New England region of the USA.
   Branching from the root of it all was New England Society. The original Nelson [W. Aldrich] became remembered as a patrician, a Brahmin. 1988-07-31, Jane O'Reilly, “Even Brahmins Get The Blues”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
   In Iran-Contra, the independent counsel investigating the scandal, Lawrence Walsh, was a deadly serious Brahmin lawyer with a sterling Republican pedigree; he nevertheless faced withering criticism from members of his own party, just as special counsel Robert Mueller has as he investigates Trump and his circle. 2018, Zach Dorfman, “How to Kill a Presidential Scandal”, in Foreign Policy
5. A learned person of refined taste and mild manners.

adj

1. Scholarly.