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 supernatur ...

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 ...

, 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 transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

, 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 nationa ...

, , - , 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 ,

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 ...

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

, Jews , Jewish people; it is often mistaken as describing white people, as the Nation of Islam 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 and James. The Arabic form ''Ya'qūb/Ya'kūb'' may be direct from the Hebrew or indire ...

, 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. ...

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

, 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 ...

, originally neutral, but became pejorative during debate over the Jewish question 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 __NOTOC__ Heathen or Heathens may refer to: Religion *Heathen, another name for a pagan *Heathen, an adherent of Heathenry Music *Band of Heathens, a North American rock and roll band *Heathen (band), a North American thrash metal band * The He ...

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

. Also used to refer to non-Jews.

Religious practitioners in general

; Cult, Cultist: Used as an ad hominem 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 John Adrian Simpson (August 20, 1854 – September 11, 1916) was a Canadian politician and businessman. Born in Peel County, Canada West, he came west in 1890 and eventually settled in Innisfail, where he opened a lumberyard. He served on Inn ...

, ''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