pandour

(redirected from Pandours)

pandour

(ˈpændʊə)
n
(Historical Terms) one of an 18th-century force of Croatian soldiers in the Austrian service, notorious for their brutality
[C18: via French from Hungarian pandur, from Croat: guard, probably from Medieval Latin banderius summoner, from bannum ban1]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

pan•dour

(ˈpæn dʊər)

n.
1. a member of an 18th-century Croatian regiment in the Austrian army, noted for its ruthlessness.
2. a brutal, marauding soldier.
[1740–50; < French pandour(e) « Serbo-Croatian pàndūr community policeman, pandour]
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