# What derogatory names do other races use for white people? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 8, 2004, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053 "2004-02-08T00:32:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/41 "2004-02-08T15:00:21Z")
> [@Manatee](#): > > It’s Pig Latin for “foe.” After I posted my question about its origins, I did a Google search on it, and several definitions said it was more likely from a West African language. [http://www.bartleby.com/61/67/O0036700.html](http://www.bartleby.com/61/67/O0036700.html) > **[Urban Dictionary: ofay](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=ofay)** > > Still a mystery as to the origin of the word. It almost certainly isn't Gullah of West African. It almost certainly isn't from "foe" in Pig Latin as that form of "Pig Latin" didn't really start until 1920 and "ofay" was around from at least the... [http://www.abc.net.au/classic/breakfast/stories/s861770.htm](http://www.abc.net.au/classic/breakfast/stories/s861770.htm) ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/42 "2004-02-08T15:56:51Z")
Mayonnaise, or mayonnaise lookin’. Most of the time I’ve just heard “white \_\_\_\_”, as in “white boy”, etc. Whether it’s derogatory or not depends on context. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/43 "2004-02-08T16:25:40Z")
Growing up in the Barrio, the term most often used was Paddy. As in Irish. It was an all purpose term for white folks. ---
**Author:** ![Loopydude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e56c9b/32.png) [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/44 "2004-02-08T16:40:28Z")
Back when I lived in Washington DC, I was called a “lima bean” by a homeless man I didn’t give money to. I had to ask another guy at work if this was bad. He starged giggling and said “Lima bean! Shit, I haven’t heard that in years! Yeah, it’s like honkey or cracka!” At that time, I hadn’t even heard of “cracker”, so he had to explain to me what that was too. By the end of the conversation I had the poor man in stitches. It’s not often a black man from Virginia gets to explain the etymology of “cracka” to a very white kid from Maine. Since my boss was Israeli, I was also regaled with all the fun things you can call a gentile, which have been mentioned above. I seem to remember one Chinese word for “foreigner” translates to something likes “foreign devil”. I’ll have to ask my boss for the definitive list. My stepmom is Greek, and the term for “non-Greek” is something like “ouflo”…I don’t know how to spell it exactly. I also don’t know what the translation is, but from what I understand, calling someone a “piece of shit” is about on par. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/45 "2004-02-08T16:42:01Z")
Opie-lookin’ mutha fucka. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/46 "2004-02-08T17:13:30Z")
All along a nearly straight east-west line from Ethiopia to Indonesia (and perhaps even farther west; I’m not sure), variations of the term “Ferengi,” “Firang,” “Phiringi,” etc. are used to mean foreigners, Europeans, white people, or Americans, depending upon the context. Sometimes it’s a neutral term for “foreigner,” but often it’s a derogatory term as well. I don’t know which language it originated in, but considering its extent and the history of the region in question, my guess is Persian. ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/47 "2004-02-08T21:00:15Z")
I still like “cracka-ass cracka”. I just has that certain ring to it! ---
**Author:** ![Boppy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/df788c/32.png) [@Boppy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boppy)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/48 "2004-02-08T21:16:34Z")
New Zealand’s indigenous people, _Maoris_, have traditionally called everyone else _Pakehas_ which is supposed to be a politically-correct term nowadays. However, _pakeha_ translates as white, foreigner or pig, none of which I’m particularly comfortable with. I don’t know whether you could apply this tag to New Zealanders who are Samoan, Tongan, Chinese, Vietnamese or any of the other races who make up our society these days - perhaps another passing kiwi could clarify that. When I lived in Asia, all white people were assumed to be American. I found it really weird to hear a Filipino refer generally to a group of me and my classmates as Americans when perhaps only one or two out of ten actually were from the US or Canada. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Batman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/22d042/32.png) [@The\_Batman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Batman)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/49 "2004-02-08T21:33:33Z")
by elmwood: > [@](#): > > When I lived in New Mexico, many Hispanics used the term huedo (sp?, pronounced like hway-doh or weh-doh) to describe Anglos. I also heard penche huedo (sp?, pronounced like "peen-chay-weh-doh), which roughly translated to “foolish whitey.” It’s not “penche huedo” it’s “Pinche Guero” (peenchay gwehroh). It means f :eek: cking blondie. Also, gavacho is usually used to refer to american things and not people. Gringo comes from the time general Pershing lead an expedition into Mexico to look for Pancho Villa, after he attacked a town in Texas. The people in Mexico shouted " green, go!" to the soldiers because of their olive uniforms. ---
**Author:** ![toque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9e8a1a/32.png) [@toque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toque)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/50 "2004-02-08T21:39:17Z")
> [@syncrolecyne](#): > > Maybe you are thinking of “bolillo” (literally a white breadroll). In Mexico it is often used against light skinned Mexicans too, people who are “güeros”. Or “gabacho”, which is a somewhat harsher version of “gringo”. Interestingly that word is a slur for “French” in Spain; the Mexicans simply appropriated the word for their own northern neighbors. It is usually a little angrier than “gringo”, and usually limited to Anglos. > > “Gringo” means American, English speaking, or simply non-Latin American foreigner depending on the area. In Mexico I have heard it directed at African-Americans or even “Hispanic” Americans at times. It’s not necessarily a racial slur, or even mean spirited; the word usually conjures up images of sunburned tourists with sandals and cameras, warning each other not to drink the water. Thank you! “Guero” (I knew it as “huero”) was the term I was looking for. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/51 "2004-02-08T21:43:14Z")
> [@Tijuana\_Golds](#): > > Gringo comes from the time general Pershing lead an expedition into Mexico to look for Pancho Villa, after he attacked a town in Texas. The people in Mexico shouted " green, go!" to the soldiers because of their olive uniforms. “Gringo” appears to be older than Pancho Villa. This from [Dictionary dot com’s definition of “gringo”:](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=gringo) "Its first recorded English use (1849) is in John Woodhouse Audubon’s Western Journal: “We were hooted and shouted at as we passed through, and called ‘Gringoes.’” It suggests that gringo came from griego, or greek, as in speaker of a foreign language: “that’s greek to me.” ---
**Author:** ![pokey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ebca7d/32.png) [@pokey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pokey)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/52 "2004-02-08T21:46:29Z")
What about mangi cake? ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/53 "2004-02-08T22:18:05Z")
> [@Ringo](#): > > “Shine” is another, likely archaic, one. > [@mmmiiikkkeee](#): > > I either heard it or imagined it, but perhaps “spook” (as in little white ghosty-thing). I’ve only heard both of these slurs referring to black people. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/54 "2004-02-08T22:18:42Z")
I’ve heard that poor whites in the Bahamas are referred to as “redlegs” but I don’t know if it is true. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2004, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/55 "2004-02-08T22:48:15Z")
> [@Tijuana\_Golds](#): > > by elmwood: > > It’s not “penche huedo” it’s “Pinche Guero” (peenchay gwehroh). It means f :eek: cking blondie. Thanks for the clarification. Maybe it’s just the New Mexico accent … I always heard it as “huedo.” ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/56 "2004-02-09T01:13:42Z")
> [@Boppy](#): > > When I lived in Asia, all white people were assumed to be American. I found it really weird to hear a Filipino refer generally to a group of me and my classmates as Americans when perhaps only one or two out of ten actually were from the US or Canada. Some Canadians would be a little _uncomfortable_ with the idea of being lumped in with Americans. See how freakin’ easy it is to be non-pc? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/57 "2004-02-09T01:58:26Z")
> [@ltfire](#): > > …but not one of them even comes close to the OP’s first example. I’m white, but you’d never insult me with those words. A black person, on the other hand, would probably…and rightfully so…kick your ass. That is an interesting perspective. I have always found it a bit disturbing, though, that it would ever be considered legitimate for someone to respond to a racial verbal insult (as much as I dislike the “N”-word and other such insults; I would be very happy to never hear them again!) by turning to violence. ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/58 "2004-02-09T06:35:16Z")
I’m enjoying this thread. I’m white and have heard some of these terms before, but a lot of them are new to me. I can’t stop thinking of something odd: that history, which has made so many racist epithets so wounding for so many, has made me (and perhaps most whites?) more or less immune. I’ve just read an entire page of insults directed at my race and not felt a thing. ---
**Author:** ![Jervoise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jervoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jervoise)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/59 "2004-02-09T07:21:03Z")
> [@E. Thorp](#): > > I’m enjoying this thread. I’m white and have heard some of these terms before, but a lot of them are new to me. > > I can’t stop thinking of something odd: that history, which has made so many racist epithets so wounding for so many, has made me (and perhaps most whites?) more or less immune. I’ve just read an entire page of insults directed at my race and not felt a thing. Not so odd, I’d say. As an analogy, “big nose” would cease to be an insult if most people in the country had great honking noses, and big-nosed citizens were historically a privileged class of society. Equally, “whitey” doesn’t hurt so much since most people I know are white, and I have not/will not experience widespread discrimination for being white. I guess our nonplussedness stems from the fact that few of us whities have experienced racial slurs _coupled with_ a lifetime as a member of a disadvantaged minority group. It’s easy to laugh off a few insulting words when your majority racial group has not historically been subject to oppression, discrimination or unequal civil rights; it’s _harder_ to ignore racial slurs when one has lived as a minority group member through systemmatic prejudice and inequity. … but I’d also venture a guess that white people living in predominantly non-white countries feel the sting of anti-white racial insults much more than we do. Sorry if this is dragging away from GQ. ---
**Author:** ![notquitekarpov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@notquitekarpov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notquitekarpov)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2004, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053/60 "2004-02-09T07:42:06Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > All along a nearly straight east-west line from Ethiopia to Indonesia (and perhaps even farther west; I’m not sure), variations of the term “Ferengi,” “Firang,” “Phiringi,” etc. are used to mean foreigners…I don’t know which language it originated in, but considering its extent and the history of the region in question, my guess is Persian. Yup, roger that - it’s Ferengi in Malaysia. There is even a Batu Ferengi (beach) on the island of Penang, which now appropriately is filled with terrible beach hotels for package tourists. As to its roots, well according to Linguist List ([http://www.emich.edu/~linguist/issues/](http://www.emich.edu/~linguist/issues/)) it was probably due to the Arabs. > [@](#): > > In a general “West” to “East” progression: > > “frangos” (“Westerner”) - Greek > “ifrangi” - Greek (“Latins (Catholics)”, Turkish, Arabic > “frang” “a European” and “frangiya” “The Country of the Franks; Western > Europe; Latin language or church” - Syriac, the classical Aramaic > (Semitic) language used in some Middle Eastern Christian churches, > “afrangui” - In Arabic (in Egypt and in some North African countries) > “ifranji” or “franji” - Arabic dialects > “faranji” - Arabic, “farangi” - Egyptian > “ifranji” (nom masculin singulier, “ifranj” or “ifranjiyine” au pluriel - > Arabic "ifranji (pl., more precisely collective) “ifranj” ‘European’, > “firanja” “Land of the Franks, Europe” - Modern Standard Arabic > “afrang,faranj, ferang, ferangi” - Modern Persian > “feringhi” - Persian > “farengi, farangi, pirangi” (Tamil version) etc.- Dravidian in India > “farangi” - Malayalam (borrowed from Portuguese in 16th century) > “farang” (“Westerner”) in Thai > “barang” - Cambodian > “farang” - Thai from Persian “farangg” in 16th century(?) > “pha-rang”, “pha-lang-xa” - formerly Vietnamese > “barang” - Bahasa Indonesia (reduplicated) “goods”, “stuff” things such as > might be brought by traders > “paalagi/papalangi/vaalagi/papa-'aa” - Samoan > (“four layers”–Rarotongan)/Maori “paakehaa” (likely a coincidence) > “Ferenghi” on Star Trek. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-derogatory-names-do-other-races-use-for-white-people/228053.md?page=4)