The Hidden History of “Pagan”: A Word Twisted by Empire

When we hear the word pagan today, it’s often associated with polytheism, nature worship, or spiritual paths that fall outside the bounds of mainstream religion. Many modern witches, mystics, and spiritual practitioners proudly reclaim it as a banner of ancient wisdom and freedom from dogma. But what if I told you the word pagan didn’t originally have anything to do with gods or spirituality at all?

Let’s take a look at where this word actually comes from—and how it became a tool of religious control.

The Original Meaning: A Civilian, A Country Dweller

The term pagan comes from the Latin word “paganus,” which originally meant “villager,” “country dweller,” or even simply “civilian.” In Roman military jargon, paganus was a term for someone who was not in the army. It carried no religious connotation whatsoever.

In fact, before Christianity spread through the empire, the Romans themselves were polytheistic—worshiping a vast pantheon of gods and goddesses. So the idea that paganus meant “someone who worships many gods” simply didn’t make sense at the time.

How the Word Changed: From Country Folk to Heretics

The shift in meaning came after Christianity became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire.

As Christianity spread from the cities—where it gained popularity first—out into the countryside, the rural folk were often the last to convert. They clung to their traditional seasonal rites, local deities, and ancestral ways. So urban Christian elites began using paganus as a slur, implying that those who hadn’t “enlisted” in the spiritual army of Christ were backwards, ignorant, and unsaved.

Suddenly, paganus wasn’t just a civilian anymore. It was someone outside the church, outside salvation, and crucially—outside the narrative the Empire was now enforcing.

A Word Weaponized by Empire

Language is power. And the Roman Empire, like all empires, knew this.

By labeling non-Christians as “pagans,” they reduced entire cultures, belief systems, and spiritual traditions into a single word meant to sound primitive, uncivilized, and irrelevant. It allowed the Empire to reframe indigenous spiritualities as threats or delusions—rather than valid, complex, and sacred ways of life.

It wasn’t just about conversion. It was about control.

The term became a convenient way to erase the spiritual diversity of the ancient world, especially as temples were closed, sacred texts were burned, and priestesses and shamans were either assimilated or silenced.

Reclaiming Pagan

Today, many people proudly identify as Pagan—but with a very different intention.

To be Pagan in the modern sense is often a conscious act of reclaiming autonomy from dominant religious and political systems. It’s a spiritual path rooted in the earth, the body, the cosmos, and ancestral memory.

By embracing the word pagan, we’re not just aligning ourselves with polytheism—we’re remembering. We’re remembering the ways of our ancestors, the sacredness of nature, and the truth that spirituality has always existed outside empire.

Words shape how we see the world. When we understand the history of a word like pagan, we begin to see how deeply spiritual identity and political power have been intertwined throughout time.

So the next time someone uses pagan as a catch-all for anything “un-Christian,” remember: this word was never really about gods. It was about control. And reclaiming it is an act of resistance.