Pariah, originally the name of the pariah people in India, has gained widespread use as an analogy, especially in the phrase "social pariah", as a term for anyone despised or rejected by others. This word is sometimes considered to be offensive. It has also been adopted as: Pariah dog Pariah comic book character Pariah computer game Pariah band Pariah state—for example, apartheid South Africa (until 1994), Zimbabwe for alleged human rights violations, and Israel.