Cis*ter"cian (?), n. [LL. Cistercium. F. Cîteaux, a convent not far from Dijon, in France: cf. F. cistercien.] (Eccl.) A monk of the prolific branch of the Benedictine Order, established in 1098 at Cîteaux, in France, by Robert, abbot of Molesme. For two hundred years the Cistercians followed the rule of St. Benedict in all its rigor. -- a. Of or pertaining to the Cistercians.