/ ˈpeɪgən; NAmE / noun (often disapproving )
1.
a person who holds religious beliefs that are not part of any of the world's main religions
2.
used in the past by Christians to describe a person who did not believe in Christianity
► pagan adjective :
a pagan festival
► pa·gan·ism / ˈpeɪgənɪzəm; NAmE / noun [ U ]
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from Latin paganus villager, rustic, from pagus country district. Latin paganus also meant civilian, becoming, in Christian Latin , heathen (i.e. one not enrolled in the army of Christ).