pre-Christian

[pree-kris-chuhn]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or belonging to a time or period before the Christian Era.

pre-Christian

adjective

1. of or referring to the period of history prior to the establishment of Christianity

Word History and Origins

Origin of pre-Christian¹

First recorded in 1820–30; pre- + Christian

Example Sentences

Instead of shutting their doors and pouring some pre-Christian version of holy water around their houses to keep the spirits away, people would often do the exact opposite.

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Christmas lights descend from the candles once used to decorate Christmas trees, which in turn may have links to pre-Christian traditions.

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The council said the scholar wrote that King Raedwald had a temple in which there were altars to pre-Christian gods alongside an altar to Christ, but did not specifically say that this was at Rendlesham.

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“She didn’t become a Christian until into her teens. And she would have inherited some of the folklore and some of the attributes of the pre-Christian goddess. And some of those are really lovely attributes.”

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The pre-Christian Druids in England and Gaul brought holly boughs indoors so woodland spirits could safely shelter from the winter cold — hence the first holiday decorations.

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