giaour

[ jou-uh r, jou-er ]

/ ˈdʒaʊ ər, ˈdʒaʊ ər /

noun Turkish.

an unbeliever; a non-Muslim, especially a Christian.

Nearby words

Origin of giaour

1555–65; earlier gower, gour < Turkish gâvur < Persian gaur, variant of gabr Zoroastrian, non-Muslim; spelling giaour < French, with gi- representing Turk palatalized g, later taken as spelling for j

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for giaour

Before the boat returned, another steamer hove in sight, which proved to be the Giaour.
The Three Commanders|W.H.G. Kingston
Gyre (derived from Gayour or Giaour, a dog), “to scratch like a dog.”
Lewis Carroll in Wonderland and at Home|Belle Moses
Fancy the Giaour pottering about in his eightieth year, and boasting that he could read small print without spectacles!
The Doctor's Wife|M. E. Braddon
I am very much interested in all that concerns your Giaour, which is universally approved of among our mountains.
Memoirs of the Life of Sir Walter Scott, Volume 4 (of 10)|John Gibson Lockhart.

Byron was less dissatisfied with his second Turkish tale than he had been with the Giaour.
The Works Of Lord Byron, Vol. 3 (of 7)|Lord Byron

British Dictionary definitions for giaour

giaour

/ (ˈdʒaʊə) /

noun

a derogatory term for a non-Muslim, esp a Christian, used esp by the Turks

Word Origin for giaour

C16: from Turkish giaur unbeliever, from Persian gaur, variant of gäbr

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for giaour

giaour

1560s, Turkish term of contempt for non-Muslims, from Persian gaur, variant of gabr "fire-worshipper," originally applied to the adherents of the Zoroastrian religion.