Neopaganism

Modern revivals of pre-Christian nature religion, from Druidry to Heathenry.

c. 1900 CE → · Western world · Modern & New

Neopaganism is an umbrella for modern movements that revive or reimagine pre-Christian European traditions — Druidry, Heathenry, Hellenism, and more — emphasizing reverence for nature, a wheel of seasonal festivals, and often a plurality of gods or an immanent sacred. Some reconstruct ancient practice from scholarship; others create anew, sharing a broadly earth-centered spirituality.

Key figures

• Revivalist writers
• Druid and heathen leaders

Texts

• Reconstructed & new sources

Beliefs

• Reverence for nature and the sacred earth
• Reviving pre-Christian gods and rites
• The turning wheel of the year

Rituals

• Seasonal festivals
• Ritual circles
• Nature-based devotion

Grew from

• Celtic Polytheism
• Norse / Germanic Paganism
• Ancient Greek Religion
• Hermeticism

Connections in the atlas

• Vegvísir
• Old Uppsala
• Gardner’s Book of Shadows
• Gerald Gardner
• The word pagan
• The Celts
• Sheela na gig
• Avebury
• Marija Gimbutas
• The Norse
• Triskele
• Stonehenge