Pagan

Pagan is a descriptive term applied, mainly in Jewish and Christian sources, to people and practices not belonging to their own religious communities. In antiquity, it did not refer to a single belief system but grouped together many local, regional, and civic traditions that involved multiple gods, rituals, and cult practices. The term gained stronger negative meaning in late antiquity, when it was used to contrast emerging Christian identity with older religious traditions. Because it reflects the perspective of those using the label rather than the self-understanding of the groups described, “pagan” is best understood as a historical category shaped by polemic and boundary-making.