[INDOLOGY @ ] Is 'firangi/ferangi' a racist term?

[Guest guest]

>suvidya@o... wrote:

>

> I disagree with lsrinivas; in none of the circles

> I move is 'desi" a term of contempt.

 

Absolutely true, even the word "French" has so many meanings in

different parts of the world (my sincere apologies to the French)

depending on how you use it. E.g., "going French" in a cafeteria

means spend your own money and don't expect others to pay. Or while

going to bed it may mean just pull up the blanket with nothing on.

People invent new meanings for fun, and it becomes a usage across the

society. More than what they do, it may be a fascination about the

French that such images are invented. Many of them may be ill-

informed or well-informed.

 

There is also a disease named firangi in Telugu, probably STD. These

usages are not same in every place, and one usage may be unknown in

other places.

 

Regards

Bhadraiah