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Gweilo or Gwailo (鬼佬; Cantonese gwai2 lou2, pronounced [kʷɐ̌i lǒu]) is a common Cantonese slang term for foreigners, and has a long history of racially deprecatory use.[1] If there is some racially deprecatory meaning or it is expressive of hate, it is shown by the addition of the adjective, sei (死, jyutping: sei2, meaning dead or damned) or as a prefix: seigwailo (死鬼佬). The female equivalent is seigweipor (死鬼婆). Furthermore, it can be used as an adjective for western ways or style.
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Gwai Lo (gui lao in mandarin) (鬼佬) literally means "ghost man"[2]. The term is sometimes translated into English as foreign devil.[3] The term arose in the 16th century when European sailors appeared in southern China as they were associated with barbarians. Historically, Chinese people had the image of its borders continuously breached by "uncivilized tribes" given to mayhem and destruction.[3] The term was popularised during the First and Second Opium Wars in response to the Unequal Treaties. In Southern parts of China, the term gwai lo was used. In Northern parts of China, the term (Western) ocean ghost ((西)洋鬼子 (Xi) Yangguizi) was used, Europe being West of China.[3]
Nowadays, some Hong Kong residents and other Cantonese speakers often refer to Caucasians and other people by their biology. This is in sharp contrast to the remainder of the People's Republic of China, including the Cantonese-speaking south, where foreigners are most commonly referred to as "old foreigner" (laowai 老外).
The term gwei (鬼) in gweilo (鬼佬) is an adjective that can be used to express hate and deprecation, an example being the local's expression of their hatred towards the Japanese during their occupation of Hong Kong in WWII with the same gwei (鬼). It conveys a general bad and negative feeling and is a somewhat obsolete and archaic/old-fashioned term nowadays and other more modern terms have largely replaced gwei (鬼) for similarly negative meanings.
The pejorative sense of gweilo (鬼佬) can be specified when the term is prefaced by the adjective sei (死, jyutping: sei2, meaning dead or damned); sei gweilo (死鬼佬), literally means "dead ghost man," thus means a bad "gweilo," or a bad Caucasian. "Sei" (死) is also commonly added to other terms in order to describe the person or people being referred to as "bad", such as "sei lo" (死佬), meaning literally "dead man" or "bad guy" and "sei chai lo" (死差佬), literally "dead policeman" or "bad policeman". Chinese people also can call each other "Sei gwei" (死鬼), literally meaning "dead ghost", but refers to a bad person also, though more often than not it is applied affectionately, similar to "Hey bitch!" in English when used affectionately. The character gwei (鬼) itself can have negative connotations, even without the word sei (死), for example when it was attached to the Japanese military in the term "Guizi Bing" (鬼子兵) during their invasion of China which lasted from 1931 to 1945. However, the same term can also be applied derogatorily to any foreign military which was an enemy to China.
While "gwailo" is commonly used by some Cantonese speakers in informal speech, the more polite alternative sai yan (西人; jyutping: sai1 jan4, literally: "western person") is now used.[4]
The term is often considered racist by non-Cantonese people.[5] Many Cantonese speakers, however, frequently use the term "gweilo" to refer to foreigners in general and they consider the term non-derogatory, which some members of the foreign community resent.[6] On the other hand, some members of the Hong Kong community with foreign ancestry, particularly the younger generation, embrace the term. The term "lo" (佬) when used in other situations is generally quaint as it is a term that has mostly fallen out of use and the intentional use of it carries a certain comical sense.
Gweilo is the most generic term, but variations include:[4]
Due to its widespread use, the term gwei, which means ghost, has taken on the general meaning of "foreigner", although still derogatory, and can refer to white people although other racial terms for Africans can be used for these people perceived to be non-white. Indians and other middle east people is called Ar-cha (阿差) or Mor-law-chai(摩羅差). For further information, see Chinese wikipedia link zh:摩羅差.
In 1999, CFMT-TV in Toronto had a cooking show named Gwai Lo Cooking. It featured a Cantonese-speaking European chef as the host, who was also the show's producer and the person who named the show. In response to some complaints, the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council ruled[7] that
... While historically, "gwai lo" may have been used by Chinese people as a derogatory remark concerning foreigners, particularly European Westerners, the persons consulted by the Council indicate that it has since lost much of its derogatory overtone. The Council finds that the expression has also lost most of its religious meaning, so that "foreign devil" no longer carries the theological significance it once did. Based on its research, the Council understands that the expression has gone from being considered offensive to, at worst, merely "impolite".
According to CFMT-TV, "Gwei Lo" was used as "a self-deprecating term of endearment".[8] Others, however, particularly foreigners living in Hong Kong, and non-Chinese subjected to the term in Vancouver and Toronto, find it to be demeaning and/or racist. However, it is also used by some non-Chinese (sometimes jocularly) to address themselves in the context of experiencing discrimination by Chinese towards them.
Use of the term "gwei" to refer to Westerners is frequently referenced in Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior.
In the film Balls of Fury Randy Daytona is often referred to as a gweilo as he is the only Caucasian player in the school.
In the film Out for a Kill Steven Seagal's character is frequently referred to as the "gweilo professor".
In the film Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story Bruce Lee (played by Jason Scott Lee) is told to not teach his moves any more to the 'Gweilo'. Or face a battle. Lee wants to teach to whoever wants to learn.
Lily Wong comic stories by Larry Feign about the build up to the handover of Hong Kong to China have frequent references to the term, often in a derogatory sense used by Lily's father.
In the 2000 computer game Deus Ex, when the player embarks on the Hong Kong mission he is often disparagingly referred to as "gweilo" by locals when attempting to talk to them. The phrase is also commonly used by harvesters in the 2011 prequel Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
In the 2010 video game Mafia 2 the protagonist Vito is derogatively referred to as "gweilo" by Chinese characters
In the 2010 video game Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days some Shanghai gang members refer to Kane and/or Lynch as 'gweilo'
In the HBO drama Deadwood, Chinese settler Mr. Wu frequently applies the term "gwai lo" to various white men. It is translated as "cocksucker" by Wu himself.
In the 1986 Movie "Big Trouble in Little China", James Hong refers to Kurt Russell as a "gwai lo".
In the 1974 book Henry Golightly by Geoffry Morgan Pike the main character is referred to as a "gwai lo" as he works on his boat in Macau and other parts of Asia.
In the 2009 book The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi the main character is referred to as a "yang guizi" by a Chinese employee as he manages a factory in futuristic Bangkok.
In Mandarin, guizi (Chinese: 鬼子; pinyin: guǐzi) is a similar term to gweilo. Guizi, however, can be used to refer to either the Japanese (specifically, 日本鬼子 rìběn guǐzi "Japanese devil" or 東洋鬼子 dōngyáng guǐzi "east ocean devil") or Europeans (洋鬼子 yáng guǐzi "foreign devil, (west) ocean devil"). Laowai (老外 lǎowài "old foreigner" or "old outsider") is a word usually used for Europeans, and is a less pejorative term in Mandarin than guizi. Also, cf. Ang Mo (Chinese: 紅毛; pinyin: hóng máo; POJ: âng-mo) meaning 'red hair' (Hokkien) .
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