the.com/barbarian
the word rome used for anyone whose language sounded like babbling nonsense.
means a person regarded as uncivilized or foreign by whoever has decided they define civilization.
from from greek barbaros, mimicking the sound of unintelligible speech, bar-bar-bar, to greek ears anyone not speaking greek. rome later borrowed the insult for the tribes beyond its borders, and the word has been doing the same job for outsiders ever since.
onomatopoeia originthe word literally imitates babbling sound
self fulfilling labelused by empires to justify conquest as civilizing
reclaimed identitysome conquered peoples later wore the label proudly
for instance
visigoths sack rome — 410 ce, the empire calls its own end barbarian
conan the barbarian — 1982 film turned the slur into a muscle-bound hero
mongol invasions — 13th century europe branded genghis khan's armies barbarian