The following is a list of religious slurs or religious insults in the English language that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about adherents or non-believers of a given

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

irreligion Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and a ...

, or to refer to them in a derogatory (critical or disrespectful),

pejorative A pejorative or slur is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or a disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hostility, or disregard. Sometimes, a ...

(disapproving or contemptuous), or insulting manner.

Christians

Non-denominational

Protestants

Catholics

Latter Day Saint movement

Jews

}) ,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, Jews , Soviet epithet as an accusation of lack of full allegiance to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, , - , Sheeny ,

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, Jews , From Yiddish '' sheyn'' or German ''schön'' meaning 'beautiful'. , , - ,

Shylock Shylock is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's play ''The Merchant of Venice'' (c. 1600). A Venetian Jewish moneylender, Shylock is the play's principal antagonist. His defeat and conversion to Christianity form the climax of the ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, Jews , Jewish people as shrewd and money-loving; derived from the character in Shakespeare's play "

Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as a ...

". , , - , Yakubian ,

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

, Jews , Jewish people; it is often mistaken as describing white people, as the

Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A black nationalist organization, the NOI focuses its attention on the African diaspora, especially on African ...

believes all white people are descended from

Yakub Yakub or Yaqub ( ar, يعقوب‎, Yaʿqūb or Ya'kūb , links=no, also transliterated in other ways) is a male given name. It is the Arabic version of Jacob (name), Jacob and James (name), James. The Arabic form ''Ya'qūb/Ya'kūb'' may be direct ...

, the biblical

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...

. Therefore, white people and Jewish people are considered one and the same. , , - ,

Yid The word Yid (; yi, ייִד) is a Jewish ethnonym of Yiddish origin. It is used as an autonym within the Ashkenazi Jewish community, and also used as slang by European football fans, anti-semites, and others. Its usage may be controversial in m ...

, Jews , Yiddish word for Jew. , , - , Zhyd ,

, Jews , From Russian and other

Slavic languages The Slavic languages, also known as the Slavonic languages, are Indo-European languages spoken primarily by the Slavic peoples and their descendants. They are thought to descend from a proto-language called Proto-Slavic, spoken during the Ear ...

, originally neutral, but became pejorative during debate over the

Jewish question The Jewish question, also referred to as the Jewish problem, was a wide-ranging debate in 19th- and 20th-century European society that pertained to the appropriate status and treatment of Jews. The debate, which was similar to other "national ...

in the 1800s. Its use was banned by the Soviet authorities in the 1930s. ,

Muslims

Hindus

Sikhs

Scientologists

General non-believers

;

Giaour Giaour or Gawur (; tr, gâvur, ; from fa, گور ''gâvor'' an obsolete variant of modern گبر ''gaur'', originally derived from arc, 𐡂𐡁𐡓𐡀, ''gaḇrā'', man; person; ro, ghiaur; al, kaur; gr, γκιαούρης, gkiaoúris, ...

: Word for a person who isn't Muslim, but especially for a Christian. Adapted from the Turkish . In the Ottoman Empire, it was usually applied to Orthodox Christians. ; Heathen: A person who does not belong to a widely held religion (especially one who is not a Christian, Jewish, or Muslim) as regarded by those who do. ;

Infidel An infidel (literally "unfaithful") is a person accused of disbelief in the central tenets of one's own religion, such as members of another religion, or the irreligious. Infidel is an ecclesiastical term in Christianity around which the Church ...

: A term used generally for non-believers. ; Kaffir: A person who is a non believer. Widely used in Muslim majority countries. ;

Pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

: A person who holds religious beliefs that differ from main world religions. Synonymous with heathen. ;Shiksa (female), Shegetz (male): (Yiddish) A non-Jewish girl or boy or one who is of Jewish descent, but does not practice

Orthodox Judaism Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on M ...

. Also used to refer to non-Jews.

Religious practitioners in general

;

Cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

, Cultist: Used as an

ad hominem ''Ad hominem'' (), short for ''argumentum ad hominem'' (), refers to several types of arguments, most of which are fallacious. Typically, this term refers to a rhetorical strategy where the speaker attacks the character, motive, or some other ...

attack against groups with differing doctrines or practices.Bromley, David Melton, J. Gordon 2002. Cults, Religion, and Violence. West Nyack, New York: Cambridge University Press.

Notes

References

* Richard A. Spears, ''Slang and Euphemism'', (2001) * John A. Simpson, ''Oxford Dictionary Of Modern Slang'' * John A. Simpson, ''Oxford English Dictionary Additions Series'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Religious slurs Lists of slang Lists of pejorative terms for people Slurs Slurs Profanity