Old Believer

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Old Believer

Where it comes from

Calque of Russian старове́р (starovér).

noun Old Believers

Any of those who separated from the official Russian Orthodox Church after 1666 as a protest against the church reforms introduced by Patriarch Nikon between 1652 and 1666. They continue liturgical and ritual practices which predate the reforms.
Similar: Old Ritualist, Raskolnik, Rascolnik · Opposite: Nikonite, Nikonian

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noun believer in Russian Orthodoxy as it was before the church reforms

Français	vieux-croyant, vieille-croyante, vieux-ritualiste, vieille-ritualiste
Deutsch	Altgläubiger, Altgläubige, Altgläubigentum
Русский	старообря́дец staroobrjádec, старообря́дка staroobrjádka, старове́р starovér, старове́рка starovérka, раско́льник raskólʹnik, раско́льница raskólʹnica

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MLA

"Old Believer." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/old%20believer. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

Old Believer. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/old%20believer

Chicago

"Old Believer." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/old%20believer.

BibTeX

@misc{old_believer_2026,
  title = {Old Believer},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/old%20believer},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}