Re: Pagan, heathen: Are these lexemes synonyms?

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "S.Kalyanaraman" <kalyan97@...>
wrote:

> Merriam-Webster Dictionary & Thesaurus:

> HEATHEN : Etymology: Middle English hethen, from Old English h[AE]
> then; akin to Old High German heidan heathen, and probably to Old
> English h[AE]th heath. Date: before 12th century 1 : of or
> relating to heathens, their religions, or their customs 2 :

STRANGE,

> UNCIVILIZED [Thesaurus: of or relating to people who do not
> acknowledge the God of the Bible <ancient heathen sacrificial

rites>

> Synonyms ethnic, gentile, infidel, infidelic, pagan, profane]

***********
The accepted etymon of "heathen" is indeed "people of the
heath". But I remember reading somewhere that the word was used as
the translation of the Greek 'ethnoi' (itself a translation of the
Hebrew 'goyim'), and it is likely that the sound similarity of the
completely unrelated "ethnoi" and "heathen" had something to do with
the choice of the latter.
Dan