stigma is a scar caused on the body by a wound or bruise, also featuring a mole or natural sign of the body.
In the religious sphere, stigma is the name given to the wounds that some religious or saints had on their bodies. There is a belief that they would represent the wounds of Jesus Christ.
As a figurative sense, the word stigma still has the meaning of something that is considered or defined as unworthy, dishonorable or disreputable.
Probably, this meaning originated from an old meaning given to the term stigma, when it was customary to make a hot iron mark on the arms and shoulders of criminals or slaves.
This stigma helped to identify in society which individual was endowed with a bad reputation or who had committed some kind of crime.
social stigma
In sociological studies, the concept of social stigma is related to the characteristics particulars of a group or individual that follow the opposite of the traditional cultural norms of a society.
That is, everything that is not considered a social cultural pattern is seen as a stigma for that society.
For example, for some years the mentally ill, blacks, homosexuals and members of some religious doctrines, such as Jews, were considered stigmas for certain societies.
Social stigma, for many scholars, helps to criminalize some socially excluded groups.
See also the meaning of slum.
