Gora (racial epithet): Difference between revisions
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==Usage in Britain and among anglophones on the Subcontinent== |
==Usage in Britain and among anglophones on the Subcontinent== |
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The term ''gora'' is often used by [[British Asian]]s and among English-speaking South Asians in the Subcontinent to refer to [[white people]], the feminine form being '''''gori'''''.<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/linguists-get-chuddies-in-twist-over-dialects-568408.html ''The Independent'', 1 April 2004]</ref>{{dead link|date=August 2012}} The plural term ''gore'' is also used to refer to white people of both genders. In this form it has taken on racial connotations so has acquired the status of a slur, though it is not inherently pejorative. |
The term ''gora'' is often used by [[British Asian]]s and among English-speaking South Asians in the Subcontinent to refer to [[white people]], the feminine form being '''''gori'''''.<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/linguists-get-chuddies-in-twist-over-dialects-568408.html ''The Independent'', 1 April 2004]</ref>{{dead link|date=August 2012}} The plural term ''gore'' is also used to refer to white people of both genders. In this form it has taken on racial connotations so has acquired the status of a slur, though it is not inherently pejorative. |
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[http://i871.photobucket.com/albums/ab279/jeffyk/goras_zpsb420456e.jpg Goras] |
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==Usage in Sikhism== |
==Usage in Sikhism== |
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Revision as of 15:57, 26 December 2012
Gora (or gaura) is a South Asian adjective for a yellow-skinned or light-brown person, whether from India, Pakistan or other regions. The word literally means "white" or "fair-skinned" in Indo-Aryan languages like Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu), and Punjabi.
Although the word distinctly means "yellowish", it is sometimes used informally to include any light-skinned person, whether light-brown, yellow or even white. In place names that date back to the colonial era - there are a number of graveyards in Pakistan such as the Gora Qabristan (the lighter-skinned graveyard) in Peshawar,[1] the Gora Kabrastan in Karachi,[2] as well as one in Chillianwala, the site of a famous battle involving the British East India Company.[3]
According to the Natyasastra, an Indian text, the term refers to "yellowish-reddish".[4] Because of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's explicitly yellow skin, he was termed "Gauranga".[5]
Usage in Britain and among anglophones on the Subcontinent
The term gora is often used by British Asians and among English-speaking South Asians in the Subcontinent to refer to white people, the feminine form being gori.[6][dead link] The plural term gore is also used to refer to white people of both genders. In this form it has taken on racial connotations so has acquired the status of a slur, though it is not inherently pejorative. Goras
Usage in Sikhism
The term has been used to describe Sikhs of non-Punjabi descent, especially White Americans.[7]
References
- ^ A vanishing landmark
- ^ Grave business
- ^ Battlefields of Chillianwallah
- ^ Studies in the Nāṭyaśāstra : with special reference to the Sanskrit drama in performance, G.H. Tārḷekar, p. 138
- ^ P. 52 Chaitanya Mahaprabhu By Prem Lata
- ^ The Independent, 1 April 2004
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=YN9jC2_7UHYC&pg=PA985&lpg=PA985&dq=gora+sikhs+united+states&source=bl&ots=Bfint1_Hrt&sig=dEGyiSAjxd117ZpofR8cpYctX9I&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VIcqUJ2YAoHA6AHB74GoDQ&ved=0CEUQ6AEwBDgK#v=onepage&q=gora%20sikhs%20united%20states&f=false
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