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Giaour, written gâvur in modern Turkish, is a derogatory word used by Turkish people to describe all who are non Muslims, with particular reference to Christians and at times to Greeks.

The word is a Turkish adaptation of the Persian gdwr or gbr, an infidel. The term was first employed as a term of contempt and reproach, but has become so general that in most cases its use is only mildly pejorative. A similar fate happened to the Arabic equivalent kaffir, or unbeliever, which was so widespread that it became the proper name of various peoples and countries (see Kaffir).

The word is borrowed into some languages in the Balkans, like "Гяур" in Bulgarian, "Ghiaur" in Romanian, "kaurin" in Serbian and Croatian and "kaurr" in Albanian.

See also

• The Giaour, a poem by Lord Byron

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

• Islamic history
• Pejoratives
• Persian loanwords
• Words of Turkish origin
• Ethno-cultural designations