Martyrdom

thumb|330x330px|Miniature from the Menologion of Basil II depicting the [[20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia, who were martyred when Roman soldiers set their church on fire on Christmas Day, AD 302]] A martyr (, mártys, 'witness' stem , martyr-) is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In colloquial usage, the term can also refer to any person who suffers a significant consequence in protest or support of a cause.

Serbian nation-building myth based on legends about events related to the Battle of Kosovo (1389)

Spanish national myth

Istishhad () is the Arabic word for "martyrdom", "death of a martyr", or (in some contexts) "heroic death". Martyrs are given the honorific shaheed. The word derives from the Semitic root shahida (), meaning "to witness". Traditionally martyrdom has an exalted place in Islam. It is widely believed among Muslims that the sins of believers who "die in the way of God" will be forgiven by Allah. Shia views on martyrdom have been profoundly influenced by internal Muslim conflicts, notably Husayn ibn Ali's martyrdom at Karbala in 680, shaping it as a central belief and practice.

speech by Nelson Mandela

right|300px|thumb|A 1935 Nazi Party publication roll of honor list for members killed in the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923. Blutzeuge (German for "blood witness", plural Blutzeugen) was a term used in Nazi Germany during the early 20th century for members of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) and associated organizations considered to be martyrs. Blutzeuge was used in Nazi propaganda in the 1930s and 1940s to depict a hero cult of "fallen" Nazis who had been murdered by opponents in the political violence in Germany during the Weimar Republic and after the Nazi seizure of control