barbarian

Some of the candidates’ fantasy characters were literal — City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, a labor organizer running for reelection, was a barbarian named “Hugo the Organizer” using his “righteous indignation” to organize workers.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2026

When Augustine died in 430, the Vandals, a barbarian people who had crossed the Rhine decades earlier and already fought their way through Gaul and Iberia, had reached the gates of Hippo.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025

The barbarian monarchs of the West sent hordes east—a counterinvasion we call the First Crusade.

From Slate ● Dec. 15, 2024

With a diving lesson from the Anjin, the barbarian, John Blackthorne.

From New York Times ● Mar. 5, 2024

“Subdued? Ashamed of having treated you viciously? Or should I just be the ol’ barbarian I always was?”

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

In any case, simply pulling up the drawbridge, hoisting the “independence” flag, and pouring boiling scorn on the barbarians at the gate isn’t a viable response.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2025

They don’t trust us barbarians to care about a world that doesn’t look like our own.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2025

Another meme Robinson posted said: “The barbarians are at the gate,” referring to ISIS.

From Salon ● May 15, 2024

Rainer leads the hapless dame into a sparkling cavern, where the queen of the barbarians herself, Conann, is perched on a high tower, clutching a human heart that looks more like a Christmas tree ornament.

From New York Times ● Feb. 1, 2024

Her children did not laugh, but eventually sang along when she left her tent to sit by the winter campfires, ringed by barbarians.

From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston