Gaijin is a Japanese word for foreigners and/or non-Japanese national. The word is composed of two kanji: and. Similarly composed words that refer to foreign things include and. The word is typically used to refer to foreigners of non-Asian ethnicities. "Gaijin" usually does not refer to Wajinborn and raised in other countries or other Asian ethnicities. Some consider it an ethnic slur and feel that the word has come to have a negative or pejorative connotation, while other observers maintain it is neutral. Gaikokujin is a more neutral and somewhat more formal term typically used in the Japanese government and in media.
Etymology and history
The word gaijin can be traced in writing to the 13th-century Heike Monogatari: Here, gaijin refers to outsiders and potential enemies. Another early reference is in Renri Hishō by Nijō Yoshimoto, where it is used to refer to a Japanese person who is a stranger, not a friend. The Noh play, ' has a scene where a servant objects to the appearance of a traveling monk: Here, gaijin also means an outsider or unfamiliar person. The word gaikokujin is composed of ' and '. Early citations exist from c. 1235, but it was largely non-extant until reappearing in 1838. The Meiji government further popularized the term, which came to replace ijin, ikokujin and ihōjin. As the Empire of Japan extended to Korea and to Taiwan, the term ' came to refer to nationals of other imperial territories. While other terms fell out of use after World War II, gaikokujin remained the official term for non-Japanese people. Some hold that the moderngaijin is a contraction of gaikokujin.
Usage
While all forms of the word mean "foreigner" or "outsider", in practice gaijin or gaikokujin are commonly used to refer to foreigners of non-Asian ethnicities. For example, ethnic Chinese and Koreans residing in Japan are typically not referred to as gaijin, but by their nationality directly, or zainichi, or for ethnic Chinese specifically, kakyō. Gaijin is also commonly used within Japanese events such as baseball and professional wrestling to collectively refer to the visiting performers from the West who will frequently tour the country. Japanese speakers commonly refer to non-Japanese people as gaijin even while they are overseas. This interpretation of the term as neutral in tone continues for some. However, though the term may be used without negative intent by many Japanese speakers, it is seen as derogatory by some and reflective of exclusionary attitudes. In light of these connotations, the more neutral and formal gaikokujin is often used as an alternative term to refer to non-Japanese people. Nanette Gottlieb, Professor of Japanese Studies at the School of Languages and Comparative Cultural Studies at the University of Queensland, suggests that the term has become controversial and is avoided now by most Japanese television broadcasters. Gaijin appears frequently in Western literature and pop culture. It forms the title of such novels as Marc Olden's Gaijin, James Melville's Go gently, gaijin, James Kirkup's Gaijin on the Ginza and James Clavell's Gai-Jin, as well as a song by Nick Lowe. It is the title of feature films such as Tizuka Yamazaki's Gaijin – Os Caminhos da Liberdade and Gaijin – Ama-me Como Sou, as well as animation shorts such as Fumi Inoue's Gaijin.
