Mod Note:
Let’s not go further down the road of RW wars, etc.
Let’s not go further down the road of RW wars, etc.
Fighting-Person!Fighting-Man!
I ask because I'm genuinely curious about the debate over the word shaman: Is calling religious practitioners all over the world "shamans" more or less problematic than calling religious practitioners all over the world "priests"? Is it the existence of an umbrella term that people find objectionable? The choice of one particular religious title over another? Something else?Shaman is very much a problem. The word shaman is currently used to describe religious practitioners all over the world . . . and that's the problem. It takes a diversity of religious practices and subsumes them under one word, one concept.
Is "shaman" the problematic term, or is "shamanism" the problem? It was my understanding that "shaman" is just a local religious title being expanded to apply to a broader category (a la "priest"), whereas "shamanism" is a completely invented colonialism that stereotypes the religions of indigenous peoples by making them appear overly simplistic.A concept that social scientists increasingly realize creates false stereotypes. The word comes from Siberian indigenous peoples, whose concept has been appropriated in a very colonial manner by anthropologists, and then spread to fantasy literature and western New Age practices.
"We" . . . do, "we" as in English-speaking westerners, yes. Do Shinto practitioners in Japan use the term "priest"? When westerners use it, does your average Shinto practitioner get upset or irritated? Do Muslim leaders use the term "cleric"? Do they get irritated when "we" do? I honestly don't know the answers to those questions, but your examples are far from simplistic as you would propose.We use the word priest to describe a Shinto practitioner. We use the word cleric to describe a Muslim leader. We use the word monk to describe a Buddhist adherent. All those words have origin in the English language and Christian faith, but it's the closest English word we have to describe the concept to someone. Shaman had similar utility as a way to describe a large amount of faiths that shared similar traits. It's not perfect, but neither is Shinto priests, Muslim clerics and Buddhist monks.
The English language word "shaman" is certainly derived from a word used in Siberia, but as far as I can tell, that word is "samān," not "shaman," and it might or might not be indigenous to the area. It could also be a loanword from Pali, as spoken by early Bhuddist missionaries in Central Asia."Shaman" is not a western term, it is an indigenous Siberian term. Kindof a big difference. Westerner's appropriation of the term happened in the 1600s, centuries ago, and certainly has become widely used in fantasy, literature, and mystical circles in Western culture.
We don't just borrow words, we chase other languages into dark alleys, beat them into a stupor, and rifle through their pockets for new words.TBF, English is syncretic AF - like, if English had to give back every word it ever borrowed, it'd be left with, well, what the F in "syncretic AF" stood for.
We are English speakers who use English words. I would assume a Shintoist uses a Japanese word, a Muslim uses Arabic, etc. We could use the native word, but we'd end up having to translate it anyway."We" . . . do, "we" as in English-speaking westerners, yes. Do Shinto practitioners in Japan use the term "priest"? When westerners use it, does your average Shinto practitioner get upset or irritated? Do Muslim leaders use the term "cleric"? Do they get irritated when "we" do? I honestly don't know the answers to those questions, but your examples are far from simplistic as you would propose.
Aaaanndddd . . . those are western terms used by westerners. "Shaman" is not a western term, it is an indigenous Siberian term. Kindof a big difference. Westerner's appropriation of the term happened in the 1600s, centuries ago, and certainly has become widely used in fantasy, literature, and mystical circles in Western culture. Are those indigenous Siberians still a distinct cultural group? Are they upset how the term "shaman" has been appropriated? Again, don't know. But I do know that many diverse religious practitioners who are labeled by outsiders as "shamans" don't appreciate the term. Our use of the word goes back centuries, but it is still a problematic word. I'm happy to remove it from my gaming, and I'm happy for publishers who make that decision.