barbarian
/bɑɹˈbɛəɹ.i.ən/adjective, noun
barbarian is spelled B-A-R-B-A-R-I-A-N: 9 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,101st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, barbarian means “Relating to people, countries, or customs perceived as uncivilized or inferior” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in barbarian?
| Letters | 9: B-A-R-B-A-R-I-A-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.9 times per million words; the 20,101st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is barbarian?
Barbarian appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,101st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce barbarian?
- UK /bɑː(ɹ)ˈbɛə.ɹi.ən/
- US /bɑɹˈbɛəɹ.i.ən/
Barbarian has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-barbarian.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with barbarian?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as barbarian from its last stressed vowel (/ɛəɹiən/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of barbarian
- barbarians plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does barbarian mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Relating to people, countries, or customs perceived as uncivilized or inferior.
noun
- 1
A non-Greek or a non-Roman citizen.
- 2
An uncivilized or uncultured person, originally compared to the hellenistic Greco-Roman civilisation; usually associated with senseless violence and self-harm or other such shows of brute force and lack of mental faculty.
- 3
derogatoryA person destitute of culture; a Philistine.
- 4
derogatorySomeone from a developing country or backward culture.
- 5
A brutish warrior depicted in sword and sorcery and other fantasy works; typically clad in primitive furs or leather and usually favoring physical strength over intelligence while often possessing a bellicose temperament and disdain for laws.
- 6
derogatoryA cruel, savage, inhumane, brutal, violently aggressive person, particularly one who is unintelligent or dim-witted; one without pity or empathy.
- 7
derogatoryA foreigner, especially with barbaric qualities as in the above definitions.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Barbarian in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | barbare |
| German | barbarisch , Barbar, Barbarin |
| Portuguese | bárbaro , bárbara |
| Spanish | bárbaro, bárbara |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does barbarian come from?
From Middle English barbarian, borrowed from Medieval Latin barbarinus (“Berber, pagan, foreigner”), from Latin barbaria (“foreign country”), from barbarus (“foreigner, savage”), from Ancient Greek βάρβαρος (bárbaros, “foreign, non-Greek, strange”), possibly onomatopoeic (mimicking foreign languages, akin to English blah blah).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).