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illuminati
designation for various groups
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Last Updated: Apr 21, 2025 • Article History
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Adam Weishaupt, leader of the Bavarian Illuminati Adam Weishaupt, a professor of canon law at Ingolstadt, founded a secret society in 1776 whose members called themselves “Perfectibilists,” though they came to be known as the “Bavarian Illuminati.” Prominent writers, thinkers, and members of the nobility from across Europe became members. Their elaborate rules and use of ciphers in communication added mystery to their activities, and the Bavarian government banned the organization in 1785. The group then disappeared from the historical record, though for centuries afterward it figured prominently in conspiracy theories.(more)
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What does the name illuminati refer to?
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illuminati, designation in use from the 15th century, assumed by or applied to various groups of persons who claimed to be unusually enlightened. The word is the plural of the Latin illuminatus (“revealed” or “enlightened”).
Early illuminati

Is the Illuminati real?Learn more about the history and origins of the so-called Illuminati.
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According to adherents, the source of the “light” was viewed as being directly communicated from a higher source or due to a clarified and exalted condition of the human intelligence. To the former class belong the Alumbrados (Spanish: “enlightened”) of Spain.
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