Senses
1. foreigner, non-Greek speaker — A person who does not speak Greek, a foreigner or outsider relative to Greco-Roman civilization. The term originally designated anyone whose speech sounded like 'bar-bar' (unintelligible babbling) to Greek ears, hence 'barbarian.' In the NT it carries varying nuance by context. Acts 28:2,4: the inhabitants of Malta are called βάρβαροι (translated 'natives' in English, Korean 원주민 'natives', but Arabic البرابرة and Hindi बर्बर retain the 'barbarian' loan), referring simply to non-Greek-speaking locals who showed unusual kindness. 1 Cor 14:11: if the hearer cannot understand the language being spoken, both parties are βάρβαρος to each other (English 'foreigner', Hindi विदेशी, Korean 이방인). Col 3:11: in the new humanity in Christ there is no distinction between Greek and barbarian (Korean 야만인 'savage/uncivilized', English 'barbarian'). Rom 1:14: Paul's obligation to both Greeks and barbarians (dative plural). Despite contextual shading, all occurrences share the core sense of linguistic-cultural outsider. 6×
AR["-البَرابِرَةُ","أعجَمِيًّا","أعجَمِيٌّ","بَرابِرَةُ","بَربَرِيٌّ","لِلْبَرابِرَةِ"]·ben["বর্বর","বর্বরদের,","বর্বরেরা","বিদেশী;","বিদেশী।"]·DE["Barbaren","βάρβαροι"]·EN["a-foreigner","barbarian","natives","to-barbarians"]·FR["Barbaren","barbare"]·heb["בַּרְבָּר","בַּרְבָּרִי","בַּרְבָּרִים"]·HI["बरबर","बर्बर","बर्बरों","बर्बरोंने","विदेशी"]·ID["orang asing","orang-asing,","orang-asing.","orang-asing;","penduduk-asli"]·IT["barbaro","barbaros"]·jav["pribumi","tiyang-Barbara,","tiyang-manca","wong-manca"]·KO["야만인","야만인들에게","원주민들이","이방인이"]·PT["bárbaro","bárbaro.","bárbaro;","bárbaros","nativos"]·RU["варвар","варварам","варваром","варвары"]·ES["a-bárbaros","bárbaro","nativos"]·SW["Washenzi,","mgeni","mshenzi","washenzi"]·TR["Barbarlara","asılı-duran","barbar","barbarlar"]·urd["اجنبی","بربریوں","بربریوں-نے","غیر-قوموں-کا","غیر-مہذب"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
βάρβᾰρος, ον, barbarous, i.e. non-Greek, foreign, not in Refs 8th c.BC+; especially as substantive βάρβαροι, οἱ, originally all non-Greek-speaking peoples, then specially of the Medes and Persians, Refs 5th c.BC+; β. πόλεμον war with the barbarians, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἡ βάρβαρος (i.e. γῆ), opposed to αἱ Ἑλληνίδες πόλεις, Refs 5th c.BC+ adverb -ρως, opposed to Ἑλληνικῶς,Refs 3rd c.AD+ __2 especially…