ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Heathendom

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /ˈhiː.ðn̩.dəm/ · Part of speech noun

Quick meaning: Heathendom is a noun meaning The state of being heathen.

Meaning

The state of being heathen.

More Meanings

  1. From one religion's or creed's perspective, the rest of the world that does not follow that creed or religion.
  2. (Germanic paganism, sometimes capitalized) The collection of people who follow Heathenry, a modern pagan faith inspired by the pre-Abrahamic religions of Germanic tribes, Anglo-Saxons and Norse peoples.
  3. (dated) Specifically, the non-Christian world; territories where Christianity is not the dominant religion.

Example Sentences

Ziegenbalg mentioned some major forms of heathendom (African, American, old European)[…]
My aunt considered all of Europe to be heathendom, and refused to visit us in Amsterdam on religious grounds.
The Crusaders meant to wrest Jerusalem from heathendom, but they managed to pillage a number of lands in Christendom along the way.
The priest argued to the king that unless clerics accompanied the colony ship, the colony would soon descend into heathendom and barbarity.

Word Forms

Synonyms for heathendom

Depending on context, synonyms include paganism, heathenism.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include paynimry, heathenry, heatheness, heathenization, hathen, hearth.

Related Dictionary Tools

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.