- Thread starter Naufrago
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I'm offended by the term Gringo
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Carlito said:
I am offended by the term also-Let me ask-would any Dominicano be offended if we refered to them as a "Spic"-Hey Spic,Venga aca--not very nice is it?? Well, some Northamericans are not as thick skinned as others so weigh your words carefully. Treat others as you care to be treated.
Miamimike said:
Actually, Spic is racially motivated while Gringo is a nickname given to Americans. Spic is said in a derrogatory manner while Gringo is not. And by the way if you call me spic I would not be offended because I don't know the meaning of it. But now if you say to me "You fvcking dirty spic, go back to your country or I will hang you and your family" then that is another story.
I don't agree. Americans are from the US, Canadians are from Canadia, South Americans are from S. America etc. I tell a Dominican Americano and they understand just like everyone else in the world except some Canadians who are just jealous that we have Florida and they do NOT.Castellamonte said:
You think people are treating you well calling you butthead? Well I guess we differ their also.
You are right in a sense
Yes you are right we are all american in this region. And that is what we should be referred as unless otherwise specified. I call us all americans. And when somoene says that they are Mexican, and that is what they want to be called, then I call them mexican.I call central americans, central americans until they specify that they want to be called "Tico" or costa rican or salvadoran.The point I am making is the point that I think our gentlemen who made this post is trying to say. That amongst family and friends he would like to be specified by who he is. Now I am sure that when a stranger calls him that he not very ofended, but these are not strangers he mostly referred to, it is his wife's people. Since they are considered family, I think it is only right to call the man what he would like to be called in order to promote a healthy relationship between him and his in-law family.Most people here call each other by our cities we come from ie "new yorker" "bostonian" etc. I hope this clears what I was meaning in my last post. take care
--TO LEARN ANOTHER LANGUAGE IS TO EARN ANOTHER SOUL--
Castellamonte said:
Yes you are right we are all american in this region. And that is what we should be referred as unless otherwise specified. I call us all americans. And when somoene says that they are Mexican, and that is what they want to be called, then I call them mexican.I call central americans, central americans until they specify that they want to be called "Tico" or costa rican or salvadoran.The point I am making is the point that I think our gentlemen who made this post is trying to say. That amongst family and friends he would like to be specified by who he is. Now I am sure that when a stranger calls him that he not very ofended, but these are not strangers he mostly referred to, it is his wife's people. Since they are considered family, I think it is only right to call the man what he would like to be called in order to promote a healthy relationship between him and his in-law family.Most people here call each other by our cities we come from ie "new yorker" "bostonian" etc. I hope this clears what I was meaning in my last post. take care
--TO LEARN ANOTHER LANGUAGE IS TO EARN ANOTHER SOUL--
sounds like an east coast thing
May be true on the coast, but not further in never heard of Houstonite, or Houstonian, think we are talking about only boston, newyork.
most other places use the state, or province
Bostonian_314 said:
May be true on the coast, but not further in never heard of Houstonite, or Houstonian, think we are talking about only boston, newyork.
most other places use the state, or province
Ikill for money said:
I agree with you-I would never refer (and never have BTW) to a Latino as a Spic or a Mujado--very deragatory. Like wise-I am just as ANGRY when someone refers to myself, a Northamerican, as a Gringo. Glad we are on the same Page there.
Gringo, negro or whatever label.
In general, I think people today are preoccupied with labels and political correctness to the point that quality of life has taken a back seat to being 'sensitive and politically correct'.
It is my experience that Dominicans are preoccupied by many things but malice (as interpreted by some in labels such as gringo/a) and political correctness are not at the top of the list. Labels are a part of the culture and no amount of people being offended by labels will change this part of the culture anytime soon. Dominicans are concerned about everyday life issues as it relates to them specifically and in most cases couldn't care less about were you are from (like PIb's husband) or where you are going (like AZB's trip). They are much more concerned about the person they are dealing with and how that person is or feels. I prefer the Dominican take on issues such as these. I think It makes life a tad more pleasant.
My wife is Dominican. She is white and blonde and is usually called gringa or rubia and it has NEVER offended her or me. Her brother calls her cucaracha blanca or cucaracha de letrina and seldom if ever does he address her by her name.
When people here in the DR need to address a stranger they don't usually say,"Hey you!". They would find a visible trait that stands out about the strange and label it on the fly. There is no premeditation or regards to its connotation or how the label will be interpreted by its recipient. That is common practice here and there is no denying it. In general, I've noticed Dominicans are not very detail oriented and usually disregard such things as European or American to label someone a gringo/a if he/she is white and does not look like the typical Dominican.
May I suggest that instead of being offended by labels such as gringo/a you accept that (if you look like one to a Dominican) you in fact are a gringo/a in this country as understood by Dominicans. Also realize, that not every Dominican that calls you gringo/a means to disrespect or belittle you.
Perhaps the issue is not the label used, but your perception of what is meant by it? It is your right to get offended by labels or anything else but why exercise that right at the cost of diminishing your quality of life? It is not where you are or where you are going its how good the trip is, so, enjoy it to the fullest. Take advantage of all the good you can find here in DR just discount or disregard the bad (labels if you deem them as such).
Cheers,
NotLurking
In general, I think people today are preoccupied with labels and political correctness to the point that quality of life has taken a back seat to being 'sensitive and politically correct'.
It is my experience that Dominicans are preoccupied by many things but malice (as interpreted by some in labels such as gringo/a) and political correctness are not at the top of the list. Labels are a part of the culture and no amount of people being offended by labels will change this part of the culture anytime soon. Dominicans are concerned about everyday life issues as it relates to them specifically and in most cases couldn't care less about were you are from (like PIb's husband) or where you are going (like AZB's trip). They are much more concerned about the person they are dealing with and how that person is or feels. I prefer the Dominican take on issues such as these. I think It makes life a tad more pleasant.
My wife is Dominican. She is white and blonde and is usually called gringa or rubia and it has NEVER offended her or me. Her brother calls her cucaracha blanca or cucaracha de letrina and seldom if ever does he address her by her name.
When people here in the DR need to address a stranger they don't usually say,"Hey you!". They would find a visible trait that stands out about the strange and label it on the fly. There is no premeditation or regards to its connotation or how the label will be interpreted by its recipient. That is common practice here and there is no denying it. In general, I've noticed Dominicans are not very detail oriented and usually disregard such things as European or American to label someone a gringo/a if he/she is white and does not look like the typical Dominican.
May I suggest that instead of being offended by labels such as gringo/a you accept that (if you look like one to a Dominican) you in fact are a gringo/a in this country as understood by Dominicans. Also realize, that not every Dominican that calls you gringo/a means to disrespect or belittle you.
Perhaps the issue is not the label used, but your perception of what is meant by it? It is your right to get offended by labels or anything else but why exercise that right at the cost of diminishing your quality of life? It is not where you are or where you are going its how good the trip is, so, enjoy it to the fullest. Take advantage of all the good you can find here in DR just discount or disregard the bad (labels if you deem them as such).
Cheers,
NotLurking
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Remember...
remember that movie with Jim Carrey. Not sure if it was the first or the second Ace Ventura Pet Detective or not, but thier in Africa. They are at this tribe and Ace sais "Did I just hear you call me 'White Devil?'"
Dude sias "Yes"
Ace "why do you keep calling me that?"
Dude: "Becouse thats how they know you"
LOL, I thought that was just so funny.
Pancho
remember that movie with Jim Carrey. Not sure if it was the first or the second Ace Ventura Pet Detective or not, but thier in Africa. They are at this tribe and Ace sais "Did I just hear you call me 'White Devil?'"
Dude sias "Yes"
Ace "why do you keep calling me that?"
Dude: "Becouse thats how they know you"
LOL, I thought that was just so funny.
Pancho
During The VietNam War,we had "MamaSans" do our laundry.
They used to write our "Nicknames" in Vietnamese inside the clothes so they knew who they belonged to.I was "Bacsi Mop",or "Fat Doctor"! Most were more embarasing than that!Some guys got very upset,some of us didn't.I think it has a lot to so with a persons self-esteme,or lack there of!
They used to write our "Nicknames" in Vietnamese inside the clothes so they knew who they belonged to.I was "Bacsi Mop",or "Fat Doctor"! Most were more embarasing than that!Some guys got very upset,some of us didn't.I think it has a lot to so with a persons self-esteme,or lack there of!
The Gringo Thingie
So what are Canadians called then....Cringo's?
I think we may be received better in most countries because we don't act the way a lot of 'Mericans do. I lived in Kentucky for about 3 years, but mostly in Canada. I'm coming up on 49. We have been to the DR 5 times, with our 6th trip staring this Sunday. Most Dominicans that we've come in contact with see our Canadian pins and treat us most excellently. That's one of the reasons we wear the Canadian pin, so you don't think we're 'Mercians.
Interesting topic that I've added my 2 cents worth to
BTW-There are probably more Canadians in Florida than 'Mericans so we'll be raising our flag there & creating a southern prvince .
Naufrago said:
So what are Canadians called then....Cringo's?
I think we may be received better in most countries because we don't act the way a lot of 'Mericans do. I lived in Kentucky for about 3 years, but mostly in Canada. I'm coming up on 49. We have been to the DR 5 times, with our 6th trip staring this Sunday. Most Dominicans that we've come in contact with see our Canadian pins and treat us most excellently. That's one of the reasons we wear the Canadian pin, so you don't think we're 'Mercians.
Interesting topic that I've added my 2 cents worth to
BTW-There are probably more Canadians in Florida than 'Mericans so we'll be raising our flag there & creating a southern prvince
.
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PretoBomba said:
Not too likely. If that is alledgedly so, why do SO many americans(USA) sew Canadian patches on their back packs when they go to europe. Or wear Canadian pins. Heck, there's even a place on the web that sells "Canadian packs" so americans(USA) can pretend to be Canadian. Most people like Canadians but have no use for americans(USA). So put that in your pipe & smoke it.
texas bill..i found this one explanation..i've never heard the term used..rather the word anglo was used in my company..when someone (spanish) was talking about a person who is white..here in nyc..or in my travels to latin countries.the word gringo is very popular in the southwest..names of restaurants,drinks,bars,etc. i personally never really got offended by the word.Texas Bill said:
Can you tell me the origin of the word "gringo"?
Not only can I tell you the origin of the word gringo, but I can tell you what's not the origin of the word gringo.
Gringo is used, usually disparagingly, to refer to a (usually English-speaking) foreigner in Latin America or Spain. More broadly it refers, again usually disparagingly, to any non-Hispanic person.
The word comes from Mexican Spanish, where it refers to a foreign language or a foreigner. It is an alteration of Spanish Griego 'a Greek; a stranger'. This is paralleled semantically by other uses of Greek referring to foreignness or strangeness, as in Shakespeare's "It's Greek to me." The Spanish word ultimately derives from Latin Graecus 'Greek'.
Gringo does not come from a popular song. A persistent legend has it that gringo comes from the chorus of Green grow the lilacs, a popular song from 1846. Supposedly, so many Americans would sing this song that Mexican soldiers, encountering them in the wars of that time, referred to the Americans as "Green grows," which became "gringos." As with most legends of this sort, there is no basis for this one.
Gringo is first recorded in the late 1840s, at a time when there really was increased contact between Mexicans and Americans. The female form, gringa, is occasionally heard.
Along the same line as paddy's post:
This is from an EXCELLENT site about the origin of words.
This is from an EXCELLENT site about the origin of words.
*Bolding mine
heh...
I used to get offended too when they'd call me Gringo... because being born and raised in New Jersey (then moved to New Mexico @ a later age) me and the family and also friends would use the term 'gringo' for white/anglosaxon Americans and their culture (like the show, Full House w/ the Olsen Twins...).
Upon moving to Santo Domingo, I'd throw an internal fit and let my closest friends know that I did not like being called 'El Gringo'. Now that I've been living here a year I've become more dominican, gotten some 'tigueraje', don't be surprised if you hear me calling a hispanic, jewish, black, or white person from the states (anyone with a blue passport) gringo!
heh.. tuff it up. If you have some true blue balls, let the people know that you don't like the term Gringo... I've done that a couple of times and each time it worked, no one is that nuts to go ahead and keep instigating a fight by calling another one a term that isn't appreeciated... or so it seems.
All I can say is goodluck, calm down a bit, and act less Gringoish.
-Rob
P.S I was once talking to some people here in the capital about the term gringo, and supposedly the term developed when the United States invaded the Dominican Republic. The US soldiers would wear green uniforms and the Dominicans would say 'Greens Go', so the US troops would leave the dominican soil. Eventually the term evolved into 'Grin-go'.
Oh yea, while we're at it... the word 'mangu', or mashed platanos, came into play when the Gringo's (heh...) would come down here and eat mashed platanos for the first time and say "Man, this is good", which eventually turned into "Mangoo".
I used to get offended too when they'd call me Gringo... because being born and raised in New Jersey (then moved to New Mexico @ a later age) me and the family and also friends would use the term 'gringo' for white/anglosaxon Americans and their culture (like the show, Full House w/ the Olsen Twins...).
Upon moving to Santo Domingo, I'd throw an internal fit and let my closest friends know that I did not like being called 'El Gringo'. Now that I've been living here a year I've become more dominican, gotten some 'tigueraje', don't be surprised if you hear me calling a hispanic, jewish, black, or white person from the states (anyone with a blue passport) gringo!
heh.. tuff it up. If you have some true blue balls, let the people know that you don't like the term Gringo... I've done that a couple of times and each time it worked, no one is that nuts to go ahead and keep instigating a fight by calling another one a term that isn't appreeciated... or so it seems.
All I can say is goodluck, calm down a bit, and act less Gringoish.
-Rob
P.S I was once talking to some people here in the capital about the term gringo, and supposedly the term developed when the United States invaded the Dominican Republic. The US soldiers would wear green uniforms and the Dominicans would say 'Greens Go', so the US troops would leave the dominican soil. Eventually the term evolved into 'Grin-go'.
Oh yea, while we're at it... the word 'mangu', or mashed platanos, came into play when the Gringo's (heh...) would come down here and eat mashed platanos for the first time and say "Man, this is good", which eventually turned into "Mangoo".
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A little Story
Around the time that the slaves were beginning to arrive on the plantations all of the local slave owners had a meeting to discuss how they were going to refer to the darker-skinned people arriving. "We are going to have to find a way to call these people and it will have to let them know that we are speaking to them and only them," Chimmed in the leader of the meeting.
"Well, maybe we can call them by the color of their skin?" Answered a voice in the middle of the room. No that is not going to work, they all agreed that it would be too confusing for them to refer to the slaves as "Nights" seeing as how they themselves were already forming a small band of protectors termed, "Night Riders".
As the meeting pushed on into the evening a voice from the back of the room called out, "Why don't we name them after the area we brought them from. Nigeria", but with the funny accents that we prevailent the word sounded more like Nigger. Well that seemed the most logical to all that were present that day. So from that they forth every "Night" colored person inside of the USA has to endure the usage of that agreed upon term that those persons began inplementing.
My point to this is that when words are formed and used for whatever reason they have meanings only to those that agree upon the meaning. If on the day that the slave masters began using the word Nigger and the slaves, themselves, began bashing in heads then the word would have died out. Instead the newly arrived slaves did not uinderstand the meaning of the word and accepted the use of it. Which today brings out the worse in people if used or heard. When the word itself is given power then the user of the word has a brief hold on the intended target of the word. Gringo, Nigger, Wet-Back, Kite, Slope, Ingine, Kraut, Chink, Spic, Wop, whatever these words started out to be let us not continue to give power to them and show the vocabulary challenged users of the words that it does not work anymore.
But then again, my friend do say that I am crazy.
Peace, Love and Hairgrease
Shelby
Poncho Villa said:
Around the time that the slaves were beginning to arrive on the plantations all of the local slave owners had a meeting to discuss how they were going to refer to the darker-skinned people arriving. "We are going to have to find a way to call these people and it will have to let them know that we are speaking to them and only them," Chimmed in the leader of the meeting.
"Well, maybe we can call them by the color of their skin?" Answered a voice in the middle of the room. No that is not going to work, they all agreed that it would be too confusing for them to refer to the slaves as "Nights" seeing as how they themselves were already forming a small band of protectors termed, "Night Riders".
As the meeting pushed on into the evening a voice from the back of the room called out, "Why don't we name them after the area we brought them from. Nigeria", but with the funny accents that we prevailent the word sounded more like Nigger. Well that seemed the most logical to all that were present that day. So from that they forth every "Night" colored person inside of the USA has to endure the usage of that agreed upon term that those persons began inplementing.
My point to this is that when words are formed and used for whatever reason they have meanings only to those that agree upon the meaning. If on the day that the slave masters began using the word Nigger and the slaves, themselves, began bashing in heads then the word would have died out. Instead the newly arrived slaves did not uinderstand the meaning of the word and accepted the use of it. Which today brings out the worse in people if used or heard. When the word itself is given power then the user of the word has a brief hold on the intended target of the word. Gringo, Nigger, Wet-Back, Kite, Slope, Ingine, Kraut, Chink, Spic, Wop, whatever these words started out to be let us not continue to give power to them and show the vocabulary challenged users of the words that it does not work anymore.
But then again, my friend do say that I am crazy.
Peace, Love and Hairgrease
Shelby
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