# Semi-Offensive Terms? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 14, 2010, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065 "2010-10-14T00:16:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/61 "2010-10-17T23:39:00Z")
When Vizzini, in “The Princess Bride,” says, “. . .you’ve bested my Spaniard. . .” I always get the giggles. It somehow dehumanizes the guy and yet there’s nothing inaccurate about it. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2010, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/62 "2010-10-17T23:53:29Z")
> [@Tethered\_Kite](#): > > When Vizzini, in “The Princess Bride,” says, “. . .you’ve bested my Spaniard. . .” I always get the giggles. It somehow dehumanizes the guy and yet there’s nothing inaccurate about it. “I give you my word as a Spaniard.” “Sorry, I’ve known too many Spaniards.” ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2010, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/63 "2010-10-17T23:55:55Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > I’ve heard that before–the idea that ‘Hoosier’ is an insult–but I still don’t understand where that idea comes from (well… it _probably_ comes from Kentucky, but I was speaking figuratively). I was born in St. Louis, and I grew up thinking “Hoosier” was an insult. ---
**Author:** ![falcotron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3ab097/32.png) [@falcotron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/falcotron)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/64 "2010-10-18T02:56:47Z")
In the SF area, some Mexican-Americans are offended by “chicano”, because they claim it’s an LA-centric term. Some SoCal Hispanics are offended by NoCal Hispanics calling them “sureño”. (In the south, norteño/sureño is primarily about street/prison gang membership, but in the north, it’s sometimes a more general cultural identification that has nothing to do with the gangs.) I’ve seen Anglos from Texas get annoyed with “Tejano” (when spoken in English). I’m not sure where it falls on the offensiveness scale, but my second day in Baltimore, someone called me “Eye-talian,” and I cracked up laughing. I’m a mutt, with ancestors from just about every European country _except_ Italy. But, even if I were Italian-American, it just sounds like such a ridiculous and archaic thing to say that I think I’d have a hard time seeing it as an insult. It might be different if I’d been raised in Baltimore, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/65 "2010-10-18T03:46:36Z")
> [@Tethered\_Kite](#): > > When Vizzini, in “The Princess Bride,” says, “. . .you’ve bested my Spaniard. . .” I always get the giggles. It somehow dehumanizes the guy and yet there’s nothing inaccurate about it. It never bothered me… ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/66 "2010-10-19T17:30:30Z")
> [@Lust4Life](#): > > As a White Brit can I just say that I am not offended by being called a Brit, Pommie, Limey , Whitey , Honkey or whatever, maybe because I am proud to be one. > > Those who walk around looking to be offended by others on a daily basis might well take a long hard look at their self esteem and their own pride or lack of, in their own nationality and/or ethnicity. I think what you mean to say is, ‘Get some self esteem, stupid!’ Hopefully even with your advanced thinking you can consider that your own situation is quite different from that of many, many others, especially in your own country. > [@Rigamarole](#): > > “Jew” seems to be at least mildly offensive in certain contexts to certain people, with “Jewish person” being preferred. Which is a little silly, since Jew is obviously a much more succinct noun-form for describing a person of Jewish descent. It makes sense in some contexts (in fact there’s a whole episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia about it), but as with ‘The blacks,’ ‘The gays,’ ‘Females’ and a few others, it’s usually a good bet that anyone using ‘The Jews…’ to start a sentence is about to make a racist overgeneralization. Sort of like starting off with ‘I’m not racist, but…’ ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/67 "2010-10-19T18:26:26Z")
> [@Apollo](#): > > Cracker > Hillbilly > Gringo > Honky > Ofay > Hick > Peckerwood > Hoosier > Firangi > Gai-ko > Goy Don’t forget Haole. There was a court case in Hawai’i a couple of years ago where this anglo tourist was driving poorly, and two local dude beat him up, while calling him a ‘fucking haole’. When the trial started, and ‘hate crime’ started to get bandied about, they claimed that they didn’t mind the color of his skin and his ethnicity, they were just pissed because he drove like a ‘fucking haole’, and that it was just coincidence that he actually WAS a haole. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/68 "2010-10-19T18:55:46Z")
Eh, we once had a young dinner guest and a family member asked him if he was Swedish. He got quite adamant that no, he was NORWEGIAN, and started to explain how being called Swedish was considered an insult, and was offensive. Er, not to us. We’re American (as was the dinner guest BTW) but our ancestors came from…Sweden. Although not as recently as our guest’s came from Norway. A lot of people get offended way too easily. ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/69 "2010-10-19T19:31:55Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > It never bothered me… Yeah, but then there was that offensive deal about your father. . . ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/70 "2010-10-19T19:35:29Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Eh, we once had a young dinner guest and a family member asked him if he was Swedish. He got quite adamant that no, he was NORWEGIAN, and started to explain how being called Swedish was considered an insult, and was offensive. > > Er, not to us. We’re American (as was the dinner guest BTW) but our ancestors came from…Sweden. Although not as recently as our guest’s came from Norway. > > A lot of people get offended way too easily. Oh no, you didn’t! Funny they even finished their meal with you. There was always that wounded victor’s pride lurking somewhere behind the vile insinuation. The oldsters in my family, newcomers to America, couldn’t even eat rutabaga without a self-satisfied chuckle. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/71 "2010-10-19T20:17:52Z")
My understanding of why Oriental is semi-insulting is due to etymology. Orient = East. So basically you’re defining a group of people by what direction they are from you, because clearly you and your geographic area is the center of the universe. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/72 "2010-10-19T20:47:29Z")
> [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](#): > > I’m just not feeling the offense for **cracker**. I learned about the term on this board and never heard anyone use it in real life. I doubt any of my friends would even know the reference. I’m with you there. Perhaps it is a localised thing to the US, whereas “Nigger” will get you in trouble pretty much worldwide. As a white Brit I can confidently say that there is no term based around my race and/or colour that I will find offensive. I guess I am lucky. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/73 "2010-10-19T20:50:18Z")
> [@HazelNutCoffee](#): > > I understand that Oriental is not considered offensive in the UK, but it still makes me twitch. And I’ve heard people over there use the term Jap without the slightest clue that it could be offensive. > > On the other hand, after hearing people call Chinese restaurants “chinky” in Belfast nothing really should surprise me anymore. Some people are just clueless. My Parents talk about going to “the chinky” to get food. I’ve tried to explain it to them. I’ve used the example of my mate Adrian, of chinese descent, that is the gentlest person you’d ever meet that the only time I ever saw get physical was when someone called him a chink. But they just don’t get it. my Dad usually replies “but I don’t get offended when someone calls me a Brit” and then I give up. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/74 "2010-10-19T20:55:50Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > My understanding of why Oriental is semi-insulting is due to etymology. Orient = East. So basically you’re defining a group of people by what direction they are from you, because clearly you and your geographic area is the center of the universe. Wouldn’t that argument make “westerner” semi-insulting? ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/75 "2010-10-19T22:16:26Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > I’m with you there. Perhaps it is a localised thing to the US, whereas “Nigger” will get you in trouble pretty much worldwide. > > As a white Brit I can confidently say that there is no term based around my race and/or colour that I will find offensive. I guess I am lucky. Um…we’re just not saying it to your face. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/76 "2010-10-20T23:10:41Z")
A good friend of mine found out, through somebody’s tracing his family tree, that instead of being a Bohunk, as he called himself, he was Swiss. He asked me for a rude word for Swiss people. I checked around, and with the help of the SDMB, he found out he was a Cheese-Holer. He was delighted. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2010, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/77 "2010-10-22T00:28:37Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > A good friend of mine found out, through somebody’s tracing his family tree, that instead of being a Bohunk, as he called himself, he was Swiss. He asked me for a rude word for Swiss people. I checked around, and with the help of the SDMB, he found out he was a Cheese-Holer. He was delighted. Bohunk? ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2010, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/78 "2010-10-22T00:39:22Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > Bohunk? Hey, I resemble that remark! It’s a slur for Bohemians – as in people from the Czech region of Bohemia, not artsy types (though Vaclav Havel is proof that it’s possible to be both). Because folks from the same general area tend to get lumped together, though, “Bohunk” has been variously applied to individuals of primarily Ukrainian, Hungarian, Slovak, Polish, and other eastern European extraction. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2010, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/79 "2010-10-22T00:54:14Z")
> [@HazelNutCoffee](#): > > I’m not saying that everyone who uses the word Oriental has pictures of elephants and veils dancing in their heads, but that is the historical connotation of the word, at least for Asian Americans. I don’t know how Asians in the UK feel about it. As my wife likes to say, “I am Japanese-American. I am not a rug.” ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2010, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065/80 "2010-10-22T01:28:49Z")
Mick or Bridget for Irish. For a period of time, many Irish female immigrants came over the pond as servants and, in some communities, rich American women would just refer to their female Irish servants as “Bridget” or “Bridie” no matter what their real name was. “Red” gets pretty tiresome for redheads, but it’s better than in the UK where the get silly with “Ginger” instead. I think any term that gets misused or overused can become offensive even if the initial users didn’t set out for it to be that way. I do laugh about being called a Yank by the Brits. After all, they originally meant it as an insult and we threw it back in their faces by wearing it with pride. I think it is a term of affection for the most part anyway. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/semi-offensive-terms/557065.md?page=5)