pagan

adjectivenounattested in dialogue

//ˈpeɪɡən//

Relating to, characteristic of religions that differ from main world religions.

adjective

1
Relating to, characteristic of religions that differ from main world religions.
Under Christianization, many converted societies transformed their pagan deities into saints.
Black metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that typically takes on anti-Christian, satanic and pagan themes.
The way Green practices witchcraft defies stereotypes of broomstick-wielding, cauldron-toting, pointy-hatted witches. He doesn’t belong to a coven. He’s not Wiccan or pagan, religions that are rooted in witchcraft. He has a few cats, though they’re better suited for snuggling than serving as helpful familiars.
2
Savage, immoral, uncivilized, wild.

Etymology

From Middle English pagan (adjective and noun), from Latin pāgānus (“rural, rustic; civilian”), replaced Middle English payen from the same root. The meaning “not Christian” arose in Vulgar Latin, probably from the 4th century, owing to the Roman countryside being largely non-Christian, or potentially from the “civilian” meaning—denoting those not in the “army of Christ”. As a self-designation of neopagans, attested since 1990. Partly displaced native heathen, from Old English hǣþen. Note the opposition: pagan, peasant (related via pāgus), rustic, savage (<< Latin silvāticus), villain (<< Latin vīllānus), boorish vs. urbane, civil, courteous (akin to court). Also note Ancient Greek ἄγροικος (ágroikos) vs. ἀστεῖος (asteîos).

noun

1
A person not adhering to a main world religion; a follower of a pantheistic or nature-worshipping religion.
This community has a surprising number of pagans.
2
An uncivilized or unsocialized person.
3
An unruly, badly educated child.
4
An outlaw biker who is a member of the Pagans MC.
5
Variant of paigonAlternative form of paigon

Forms

plural: pagans

Paddy · An Irish nickname for Patrick.padre · A military clergyman.Padre · A player for the San Diego Padres.

pagan · Relating to, characteristic of religions that differ from main world religions.

Pagan · A male given name from Latin.page · One of the many pieces of paper bound together within a book…Page · An English and Scottish surname originating as an occupation…

The neighbouring pages — Alphabetical order follows the rules of the language, not byte values: an accent decides only between two otherwise identical words, and Spanish files Ñ as a letter of its own.