12 Everyday Words You Use That Are Actually Racist
7. Barbarian
The Barbarians may be a rugby team who invite players to unite together and promote differing nations and cultures - but the actual original connotations of the term could not be any further removed... The Ancient Greeks believed all foreign languages sounded like "bar bar" was just being repeated over and over again - so they decided to adopt a word including that "phrase" in order to refer to alien cultures. A "barbarian" nowadays refers to an uncultured or brutish person - but in ancient times it was basically a racist term for anyone who wasn't Greek.
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
The Barbarians may be a rugby team who invite players to unite together and promote differing nations and cultures - but the actual original connotations of the term could not be any further removed... The Ancient Greeks believed all foreign languages sounded like "bar bar" was just being repeated over and over again - so they decided to adopt a word including that "phrase" in order to refer to alien cultures. A "barbarian" nowadays refers to an uncultured or brutish person - but in ancient times it was basically a racist term for anyone who wasn't Greek.