ˈstīˌlīt noun
( -s )
Etymology: Late Greek stylitēs, from Greek stylos pillar + -itēs -ite — more at steer
: one of a class of ascetics who lived as hermits on the tops of pillars chiefly in Syria and after the time of the famous pillar hermit Simeon Stylites (†A.D.459) — called also pillar saint