Definitions for "Franciscans"
(English) An order of Catholic priests; Franciscans were the first of the regular orders the Spanish crown sent to convert the indigenous people of the Americas. They arrived in Santo Domingo before 1500 and landed in New Spain in 1524. They began evangelization in PerĂº circa 1546, and founded the first Franciscan college in Quito, Ecuador in 1555. See also regular orders.