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Deviance or deviancy: one who deviates, specially from norms of social behavior; characterized by deviation from an usual expectation or a societal standard; departing from patterns or accepted standards.

Deviant is used as a slur in many languages, sometimes back-forming other words. This isn’t intended to represent unethical actions, since deviate sexuality may be juridically conceptualized in some places of the world. Not to associate this with words perverted, violator, divertor, detoured, degenerated or devious.

See also: variance, queer, heteroclite, dissident, divergent, nonconformist, free spirited, diverse.

Etymology comes from dēviā (out of the road), but in Portuguese viado alternatively derives veado, transviado (transversed) or desviado/desviante, meaning deer which derive vēnor (to hunt, from weyh- or wenh₁-), another back-formation for Venus (venia, indulgence, to strive/wish, love).

– Ap