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Webster's Dictionary (1865)

2 entries under this word

Pagan

Pā'gan, n.

noun

n. [Lat. paganus, a countryman, peasant, villager; It. & Sp. pagano, Pr. pagan, Fr. païen. See infra.] One who worships false gods; one who is neither a Christian, a Mahommedan, nor a Jew.

Synonyms—Gentile; heathen; idolater.—PAGAN, GENTILE, HEATHEN. Gentile was applied to the other nations of the earth as opposed to the Jews. Pagan was the name given to idolaters in the early Christian church, because the villagers, being most remote from the centers of instruction, remained for a long time unconverted. Heathen has the same origin. Pagan is now more properly applied to rude and uncivilized idolaters, while heathen embraces all who practice idolatry.

Pā'gan, a.

adjective

a. [Lat. paganus, belonging to the country, from pagus, a district, canton, the country; It. & Sp. pagano, Pr. pagan, Fr. païen. Cf. supra.] Pertaining to the worship or worshipers of false gods; heathen; heathenish; as, pagan tribes, superstitions, and the like. “And all the rites of pagan honor paid.” Dryden.