# Is "Jew" considered derogatory in some places? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 24, 2011, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669 "2011-10-24T19:42:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/41 "2011-10-25T20:06:04Z")
> [@Cartooniverse](#): > > By comparison, a person who has dark skin who was born in the United States whose parents and grandparents were born in the United States whose ancestors were all born in Ghana would have been: > > Born in 1904 and been called Colored > > Born in 1954 and been called a Negro > > Born in 1971 and been called Black > > Born in 2003 and been called an African American. Or born in any era and be called “the n word.” A word that wasn’t really considered offensive until around 1960. It’s a long jump from Gone With the Wind to To Kill A Mockingbird and The OJ Simpson Trial. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/42 "2011-10-25T21:39:31Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Here’s a [list](http://www.seattlescrabble.org/expurg.php) of words deleted from from the latest OWL. Fascinating. Here is my list of completely unfamiliar yet Scrabble-banned words to look up when I get home, for fear of what NSFW types of flags could be raised from me looking them up: BUCKRA BUCKRAS COMSYMP COMSYMPS GADJO GADJE GINZO GINZOES KANAKA KANAKAS NITCHIE NITCHIES I have a feeling “comsymp” is short for “communist sympathizer”, which is more funny than anything, though perhaps it’s a holdover from McCarthy era blacklisting in the USA and should be about as insulting as “teabagger” would be today (which I suppose is also not in the Scrabble dictionary). And “wingnut” is a legitimate word on its own. Other oddities, from my POV: Isn’t HUNKY a fairly common compliment for a well-muscled man? Or is this on the list due to being some variant of “bohunk”? JESUIT is an insulting term? And PAPIST, NONPAPIST? What, are there still British Jacobite factions around or something? And how can HO be on the list when it has a very common non-offensive meaning of “hi, hail, ahoy there”? ---
**Author:** ![taffygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@taffygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/taffygirl)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/43 "2011-10-25T21:43:44Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Or born in any era and be called “the n word.” A word that wasn’t really considered offensive until around 1960. Cite, please? ---
**Author:** ![CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f1d935/32.png) [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/44 "2011-10-25T21:44:40Z")
And, to circle around to the OP, why would _Jew_ or _Jews_ be omitted? Is it like the reference to The Office? “There must be a less offensive term” ? Bizarre. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/45 "2011-10-25T21:59:47Z")
Derogatoriness comes from the attitude of the speaker, not the particular choice of word. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/46 "2011-10-25T22:10:58Z")
> [@CC](#): > > And, to circle around to the OP, why would _Jew_ or _Jews_ be omitted? Is it like the reference to The Office? “There must be a less offensive term” ? Bizarre. [My post is my cite](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=14391385#post14391385). ---
**Author:** ![Sirreal72](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Sirreal72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sirreal72)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/47 "2011-10-25T22:14:44Z")
> [@Cartooniverse](#): > > We prefer "Hebe:. 😉 > > Born in 1904 and been called Colored > > Born in 1954 and been called a Negro > > Born in 1971 and been called Black > > Born in 2003 and been called an African American. I always thought Negro came before Colored. Seems I remember reading some 17th century writings talking about negro slaves, and seeing old black and white footage of people talking about the “colored community”…? I could be wrong, and I guess it really doesn’t matter except in a historical retrospect. ---
**Author:** ![Sirreal72](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Sirreal72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sirreal72)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/48 "2011-10-25T22:31:46Z")
> [@taffygirl](#): > > Either term could be considered derogatory if it’s said in a derogatory way. A few years back, some of my more ignorant students were using “Jewish” as in insult, similar in meaning to “stupid.” It infuriated me, and I called them on it every time. The answer was always, “It means _stupid_; it doesn’t really have anything to do with Jewish people,” (I told you they were ignorant.),to which I’d reply, “Oh, yeah? So why aren’t you saying, ‘That’s so Baptist!’ or ‘That’s really Methodist?’ And who do you think started that particular slang term?” Fortunately, I haven’t heard that usage in four or five years. > > Just when I think we’re making some progress as a species…:mad: I never heard that one, but lord help me if I wasn’t about to smack my nephews a time or three for calling something “gay”. Apparently kids started saying things they consider stupid to be “gay”. It’s bad enough for folks to be judged b/c they are different from us, but to make it an insult is **literally** adding insult to injury. My personal theory on why that misuse of term happens is the same reason the OP feels funny about the word “Jew”. Kids hear adults talking about gays (or Jews) in a derogratory way and associate the word as being “bad” somehow, even if they are too young to understand why. I think the only time I heard the word Jew growing up it was in a somewhat negative way, either on TV or in church. Which is darn weird when you think about it. The phrase “Jesus was the king of the Jews” was not said in a “good” way… probably b/c it was the Romans that were saying that phrase. (Ok, no bible corrections please… I’m telling you what my childhood self heard, not speaking authoritatively) And it was the Jews that turned on Jesus, etc, etc, etc. See what I mean? It sounds like a negative word if all you ever hear is negative statements made regarding that word. “Military Industrial Complex” sounds like a negative phrase too… but probably because I’ve never heard it said in a positive way. I find this a interesting conversation btw because I feel certain words (and even jobs) are becoming negative in the world. If someone is “playing politics” then that’s a bad thing. If someone tells you they are a lawyer, what’s the first thing you think of? Dead lawyer jokes? Politicians and lawyers are not popular people these days. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/49 "2011-10-25T22:42:10Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Derogatoriness comes from the attitude of the speaker, not the particular choice of word. Right. If you’re getting a burger and fries at Wendy’s, ask for ketchup and the counter person says “Oh fer Chrissake, here’s your friggin’ ketchup, Jew!” - that’s rather rude. On the other hand, if they say “Sorry I forgot your ketchup, Jew, here ya go”, that’s fine. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/50 "2011-10-25T23:03:33Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > hijack: So any noun which in English usage would be capitalized is considered a proper noun, such as, for example, “English”? I would never have thought of an ethnicity’s name or a language’s name as being a “proper noun” (in Spanish _nombres propios_ apply only to physical or legal persons), but then I was never taught English grammar in English. > /hijack An interesting slant on this (relevant to Scrabble) is that while proper nouns are excluded, capitalised adjectives were not. For example “Iraqi” is a proper noun (unacceptable) but also an adjective (acceptable). This was useful if you had a Q but no U. However I believe that the rules have since been simplified to disallow all capitalised words. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2011, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/51 "2011-10-26T01:57:55Z")
> [@Sirreal72](#): > > I always thought Negro came before Colored. Seems I remember reading some 17th century writings talking about negro slaves, and seeing old black and white footage of people talking about the “colored community”…? I could be wrong, and I guess it really doesn’t matter except in a historical retrospect. You are quite correct. My mistake. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/52 "2011-10-26T10:07:07Z")
> [@Sirreal72](#): > > I always thought Negro came before Colored. Depends on the capitalization. The lower-case word “negro” came into use as soon as the Spanish got involved in the slave trade, and “colored” as soon as the English and Americans started looking for an English word, but the custom of capitalizing the word “Negro” to show respect instead of scorn for the race came much later. > [@Jackmanii](#): > > If you’re getting a burger and fries at Wendy’s, ask for ketchup and the counter person says “Oh fer Chrissake, here’s your friggin’ ketchup, Jew!” - that’s rather rude. I’m hearing that in a Cartman voice. 😉 Which is not a bad example - he calls Kyle “Jew” in the same way Kyle calls him “Fatass”. Derogatory, but in a friends-busting-each-others’-balls kind of way. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2011, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/53 "2011-10-26T13:31:00Z")
> [@taffygirl](#): > > Cite, please? [Wiki article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigger). I remember from my chldhood that “black” was considered worse than “the n word.” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2011, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/54 "2011-10-26T13:56:07Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > [Wiki article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigger). > > I remember from my chldhood that “black” was considered worse than “the n word.” From your cite: > [@](#): > > By the 1900s, nigger had become a pejorative word. In its stead, the term colored became the mainstream alternative to negro and its derived terms. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669.md?page=2)