I am a long-time fan of Frank Herbert’s Dune series, both as books and films. I’d always assumed the Bene Gesserit sisterhood’s name was merely a product of Herbert’s prodigious imagination. Today I learned I had guessed wrong.
The name “Bene Gessserit” comes from the law school Latin phrase “quamdiu se bene gesserit” meaning “as long as he shall behave himself well.” So the name of the order of women adepts means “good actions” or “good skills” and certainly describes the Reverent Mothers’ abilities.
