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1. What is a pagan?
Basically, for simplicity, we tend to define a Pagan as being someone who does not follow one of the "big 5 religions", those being: Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, and Christianity.
2. Where did the word 'pagan' come from?
The word 'pagan' comes from the Latin "paganus", which means "an old country dweller, rustic, villager",
i.e. a peasant / the common country folk. It was used to describe the people who lived far enough from the cities of Rome so that they were not converted to Christianity. The word 'pagan' was not one that pagans used to describe themselves until relatively recently.
3. So just how old is Paganism anyway?
Well, that's hard to say. It's been said that there have probably been pagans for as long as there has been conscious thought (which is quite a few thousand years). People have often used some form of religious belief to comprehend what they couldn't
(i.e. Zeus was a Greek God and it was said he was the one who threw lightening bolts down to earth) and many of those religious beliefs fall into the pagan category (see question 1).
4. What are the different kinds of Paganism?
There are too many types of paganism to list all of them here. Some of them are: Wicca, Druidism, Kemetic (Egyptian), Asatru (Norse Heathenism), Hellenic reconstructionist (Greek), Voudoun, Thelema, Shamanism, Native American beliefs, Santeria, Shinto and varieties of Atheism.
But the list goes on. Also, many pagans take their beliefs from many sources, so they are not really from any one type of paganism.
These pagans are most often referred to as Solitary Eclectics.
5. What do Pagans believe in?
Pagans believe in a wide variety of beliefs, depending on what tradition they follow, so it's hard to summarize. There is, however, a major theme of self-reliance, the celebration of life, and interconnectedness with all things (for example - nature).
There is also the idea that you should not harm others. Perhaps the Wiccan Rede states it best, "An it harm none, do what ye will." However, pagans do not believe in passing around collection plates, conversion, religious icons or the Christian concepts of good and evil.
6. Are Pagans and Satanists the same?
No. And many pagans are offended by this assumption.
Satan is a concept belonging to the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), and many (perhaps most) pagans do not believe in Satan in any way at all.
Additionally, the majority of modern Satanists themselves do not believe in Satan or the concept of evil.
They choose the name "Satanist" for a variety of reasons, including declaring themselves the opposite of Christianity, and expressing their opposition to things considered accepted norms.
This modern Satanism includes the basic tenets of self-improvement and self-importance, without the belief in gods, evil or good.
The few people who call themselves "Satanists" and actually do believe in Satan and the concept of evil would be considered a part of Christianity, Judaism, or Islam, following a deity of those religions.
7. What about pentagrams?
Common folklore is that a pentagram [or pentacle] with the point facing up symbolizes goodness and a pentagram with the point facing down symbolizes malicious intent.
However, few Pagans actually believe such folklore and instead use the pentagram as a symbol of neutrality or good intent.
The pentagram is a symbol of the Universe, with points for Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Spirit, and a unifying circle.
Despite the recent display of pentagrams in movies depicting evil witchcraft and the following of evil deities, the pentagram was never a symbol of evil, only declared so by Christian religions as they tried to demonize the localized, traditional/cultural religious practices in order to take over.
"In fact, the inverted pentagram, as used in Eastern Star rites for instance, is an allegorical Star of Bethlehem, pointing from the heavens to Earth to signify the manifesting of Spirit in the Flesh." (source here)
Several thousand years ago, the religious symbol of Pagans (one of many) was a six-sided star with a circle, with points facing both up and down, symbolizing balance of the universe. After the Jewish faith adopted this Pagan symbol and removed the circle, the pentagram has undergone many changes since.
For some more information on pentagrams, see The Pentagram or Five-Pointed Star, as well as The Pentagram, The Five Elements, and the Chinese Zodiac.
 8. Why do people become Pagans in the first place?
There are many reasons. Common reasons might include seeking a more personalized religion, wanting to get back to nature or dissatisfaction with organized religious teachings.
9. What is the proof behind Paganism?
Pagans are not out to prove other religions wrong or to prove theirs right. They tend to believe that if that's what another person follows, then that's fine.
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