paganism
pa·gan·ism/ˈpeɪɡənɪzm̩/noun
paganism is spelled P-A-G-A-N-I-S-M: 8 letters and 3 syllables (pa·gan·ism). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, paganism means “Any indigenous polytheistic religion” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of paganism is paganisms.
How many letters and syllables are in paganism?
| Letters | 8: P-A-G-A-N-I-S-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: pa·gan·ism |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,459th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is paganism?
Paganism appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th 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 paganism?
- /ˈpeɪɡənɪzm̩/
Paganism has 3 syllables, split pa·gan·ism in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-paganism.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of paganism
- paganisms plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does paganism mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any indigenous polytheistic religion.
Most people in that region practise their own form of paganism.
- 2
Any of a class of religions often associated with nature rituals.
Various neopagan movements have arisen, each advancing its own form of paganism. Some are monotheist.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Paganism in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense local religions practiced before the introduction of Christianity:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | paganisme |
| German | Heidentum, Paganismus |
| Portuguese | paganismo |
| Spanish | paganismo |
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 paganism come from?
From Latin pāgānismus (“heathenism”), from pāgānus (“peasant, rural, rustic”). The term was used pejoratively by local Orthodox Christian Demonyms to belittle what remained of alternative native ideas and ideals. By surface analysis, pagan + -ism.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).