There has been much scholarly debate as to the origin of the term paganism, especially since no one before the 20th century self-identified as a pagan.
Once the Abrahamic religions started to become more widely adopted (in processes known as Christianization and Islamization), various names to describe those who did not adhere to them started to develop; some of these included Hellene, pagan, and heathen, and at times these names were used as slurs. In the 19th century, paganism was re-adopted as a self-descriptor by members of various artistic groups inspired by the ancient world. In the 20th century, it came to be applied as a self-description by practitioners of contemporary pagan, or neopagan, religious movements.
Contemporary knowledge of old pagan religions comes from several sources, including anthropological field research records, the evidence of archaeological artefacts, and the historical accounts of ancient writers regarding cultures known to the classical world. Forms of these religions, influenced by various historical pagan beliefs of pre-modern Europe, exist today and are known as contemporary or modern paganism, also referred to as Neopaganism.
While most pagan religions express a worldview that is pantheistic, polytheistic, or animistic, there are some monotheistic pagans.
