Is Gaijin a slur?

For Americans that don't have a very strong command of Japanese (or no understanding at all), a simple explanation I use that they can relate to is to compare it to the English word "Jew."

Jew is both used by the Jewish people and others in a matter of fact, non-insulting way.

However, when intentionally used in a very specific context and delivery, you can use the word as a slur and a pejorative.

I've found that it depends on the context. There's a difference between, for instance, a kid going "woah, a gaijin!" and an older person going "ugh, a gaijin." Sure it's a shortened form of the more polite "gaikokujin" but tone plays a big role in how to recieve it.

It was a rude way to talk about foreigners. It’s not something that is particularly polite. If you hear it from someone in a formal setting, it’s definitely negative.

If a shop staff or a nurse or something uses it then they’re being rude.

If someone is walking through the airport and loudly says うわ！外人が多いんだぜー that’s not particularly polite either.

A lot of people really want this word to just be a short version of 外国人 but let’s be real, the original use of it was meant to be rude.

One could argue that “Jap” is just a short version of “Japanese” but we all know that’s a load of shit

It’s actually a slur according to the broadcasting code of Japan. As for real life you still here it, with or without any ill intent.

Its a more blunt/shortened way of saying gaikokujin. It's definitely not polite to say it or be told you are one, but its not necessarily a slur. It has the same association as when you hear someone say "sigh, foreigners."

It is a slur. Though the online-Anglophone-immigrants-in-Japan community likes to debate the slurriness of the word every so often, the fact that the Japanese population around me does not use it shows pretty conclusively that it is a slur.

Remember that slurs are sometimes used by people who don't intend them to be taken as slurs, but that doesn't mean they magically stop being slurs.

I wouldn't say it was a slur. Certainly not on the same level as racial slurs that you might hear on stormfront or something like that.

Korea, China, India and SE Asia have similar words that have the same function of saying 'not one of us' - (Waegook, Laowai, Gora, Farang)

That concept perhaps isn't considered rude in Asia.

If a BBC news report said 'A foreigner was involved in a shooting today', we would consider that odd, why not just say 'An Italian or a Somali'. The onus would be on where the person is from. Whereas in Asia there would be an undue focus on the fact that the person isn't from here. It's all relative.

I'd say it's more become the standard expression without negative connotation, especially if there are young people using it. Seems like the more polite way to say foreigner has become 外人さん

Anything is a slur if you want it to be. That's the magic of language.

It might not be intended as a slur by people who are saying it, but it very often is used exactly like a slur.

If a little old lady were to say it to me I’d bear it, but if a business man says it then you know exactly what he means by it.

If a coworker you don’t particularly like uses it then you know exactly what is meant by it.

If the government where to use it then you would be afraid.

It’s a slur.

Gaijin is also just much easier to type and say than the more formal Gaikokujin. I think it is usually obvious when Gaijin is used as an insult. For most cases, people are just lazy or prefer more straightforward words. Best to interpret the use of word by context instead of blanket saying word is bad.

Gaijin also means outsiders. So, it's like saying you are not part of their group. Might seen to be a small thing for us but it's a big diss for the Japanese.

One factor that determines whether a word is a slur or not is if it has a history of being used as a derogatory term for a group of people. I don’t know whether the word “gaijin” is a slur or not, but if I were to find out that it actually has a history of being used in that way, I’d be convinced that it’s a slur.

Edit to add: The way I deal with the word is to not use it. I’ve only heard from a couple of people accounts of the word being used in a discriminatory way, and while that isn’t enough to convince me it’s a slur, I think the probability that it’s a slur is high enough that I shouldn’t use it.

Edit: Given the history of the word on Wikipedia, I’m convinced it’s a slur (thanks PaxDramaticus!)

Gringos

nah, I am what I am not sure why someone would get upset over it.

I wouldn't call it a slur at all. I don't see why people get upset by being called gaijin. Sure if someone said it in a negative way, that's upsetting but that's the person's attitude, not the word they used that's effed up. I think the people who watched Tokyo Drift have got it into their heads that gaijin is a bad word.

Don't forget that japan is heavily customer service based society and Japanese people are very aware of how they speak and what they say at all times. Especially considering it's additionally a vertical society and they absolutely _must_be able to switch between casual nihongo and keigo on a whim, because if they don't they get into trouble by making the opponent upset/angry. Even Japanese kids know this, let alone adults. They are supposed to say gaikoku no kata or at least gaikokujin but most of the time intentionally choose to say gaijin simply because in their head they separate us and them. Aka you're not Japanese so you're automatically a lower lifeforms. Ever seen someone say "gaijin" on a Japanese TV?

Did you notice that Japanese omotenashi culture often tends to evaporate when they switch between a Japanese customer and a foreign customer? It definitely happens because japanese automatically see themselves as senpais and foreigners as kohais so they treat foreigners accordingly.

Also notice how they say nippon/nipponjin instead of nihon/nihonjin on special occasions like the Olympics or when it comes to comparing Japan to other countries. You may think there's no difference at first. But it's also a similar way of making them feel superior. Nippon basically implies "glorious superior japan, not like some dirty gaikoku you have there". Losing war to inferior gaijins left many many Japanese butthurt even to this day, especially older people, and there's also this "white foreigner complex" they have.

And who can forget the notorious anti foreigner movement in their wagons with megaphones blaring their garbage at max volume? Living next to a road and I hear them pass every day.

People in Tokyo hold themselves better but oh boy here in Osaka they will absolutely let you know that you're a gaijin, even in business environment.

Japan is no stranger when it comes to passive aggressive behavior.

If you care about this at all, 絶対外人だ