calumny

Calumny is the act of making false statements about someone with the intent to damage that person’s reputation. It is a form of defamation, typically involving accusations of wrongdoing or immorality that are knowingly false or made with reckless disregard for the truth. The harm from calumny can affect social standing, employment, opportunities, and personal relationships.

In legal terms, calumny overlaps with defamation, which includes slander (spoken statements) and libel (written ones). Most legal systems require that the statement be false and published to a third party, and that it causes harm. In cases involving public figures, higher standards such as proof of actual malice may apply. Some jurisdictions explicitly criminalize false accusations as offenses against reputation or as perjury, depending on the surrounding conduct and intent.

The term derives from Latin calumnia, from calumpnia, meaning false accusation or deceit. In English, calumny has carried a strong moral condemnation of malicious falsehood. It appears in classical and early modern literature as a serious offense that erodes trust within communities and institutions.

Defenses against calumny include truth, or a belief in the truth that is reasonably held (truthful defense), and, in some contexts, opinion or fair comment on public matters. Privilege may apply in certain communications, such as official proceedings or other protected contexts. Remedies typically involve retracting the statement, apologizing, and, where appropriate, civil damages or other legal remedies.

See also defamation, slander, libel, misinformation, rumor.