What does the word "mendicant" mean? Why would groups like the Franciscans call themselves "mendicant?"

Mendicant is basically someone who is a beggar.

People who live off begging can be called Mendicants. Mendicant also implies extreme poverty.

mendicant can also refer to a man belonging to a religious order, such as the Franciscan Friars - who do not own personal property but live together in a monastery and survive off alms donated by others. As an adjective, mendicant describes someone who lives such an existence.