How did 外国人 become 老外?

Question

From Baidu:

老外，是中国人对国外人的一种俗称，类似与老张、老王、老李之类的称呼。称呼中加“老”显得亲热，比如“老乡”“老表”，称呼你老外，就像称呼老张老李那样，大大咧咧，随便亲切。过去中国人对外国人的称呼都是用在第三人称上，只有“老外”可以用于第二人称。

To translate, it says laowai is a colloquial term for foreigners, similar to nicknames such as laozhang and laowang. The word lao is added to sound friendly. In the past, Chinese used terms that address foreigners as third persons, the term laowai can be used on a second person.

From Wikipedia:

Laowai is a commonly used Chinese mandarin word. It is the shortened, informal version close to wàiguórén 外国人 ("foreigner"), a better translation of Laowai would be "alien"... So Laowai 老外 is more of a neutral term which can be used as: "an obvious foreigner", "very exotic", or "adventive", "alien".

Based on the above, there are two lines of thought: one saying that 老 is added as an indication of friendliness to foreigners; another saying that 老 is added to indicate that a foreigner is "always" an outsider.

Does anyone know the exact origin of this term?

Answer 1

As Wikipedia mentioned, “老” is an empty prefix. Laowai is neither positive nor negative.

Actually, the word is often used to refer to a variety of races like Caucasians, Indians, Africans and Middle Easterners, who look drastically different from Asians. You will rarely hear a Chinese person call Japanese, Koreans and Filipinos 老外. That's why you hear some Chinese use this term even in the United States and Canada.

The word emerged in Beijing and became popular there. In southern China it is used less.

What's the reason you hear this word used frequently in China? Because westerners attract more attention in the public as they look different. The quickest way to refer them is with 老外. Saying 外国人 is too formal.

The word might become less popular when more foreigners start living in/visiting China. It'd be less strange to see them in the public.

The word is also used less among those who are better educated. He has a name, why call him 老外? Regardless of whether the word is negative or not, saying such is not really polite.

Answer 2

You have the answer in your own question

similar to nicknames such as laozhang and laowang

老 + surname is used as a way of addressing people in an informal way. As you said, a person whose surname is 张 can be called 老张 and a person whose surname is 李 can be called 老李. The same is true with younger people: 小张 and 小李。

But how do you call a foreigner, who doesn't have a Chinese family name? You take the first character (the 'surname') of 外国人 and get 老外.

Answer 3

@BillyChan's answer is pretty good. This is just an additional thought.

There is a difference in intention and perception about the word 老外. What I mean is, what a Chinese speaker intends or means by the use of this word, and how the foreigner listener often perceives it are two different things. Although it may be mildly impolite, most Chinese people do not use it with any ill will, but commonly as an informal term expressing surprise or curiosity at seeing a foreigner who looks different than they do. However, western foreigners generally perceive it as a derogatory term, taking it to mean an outsider, someone who doesn't belong (and never will), or even taking it to mean a freak or monster. The difference between intention and perception can be quite large at times.

This difference is also reflected to some extent by the Baidu and Wikipedia articles you quoted. Although both are "politically correct," the Baidu definition was probably written by a Chinese person and thus emphasizes the more neutral (and even respectful) origin of the term. The Wikipedia article on the other hand was probably written by a Westerner and thus emphasizes a certain sense of being an outsider or different.

The term 老外 is a good reminder that learning Chinese is more than learning grammar and vocabulary. It is also about learning culture. And as our cultural perceptions gradually gets closer to Chinese speakers' intentions, I think we will find 老外 to be a more neutral term.

Answer 4

I am Chinese from the northern China. We often use 老to call some people ,such as “老李” whose last name is 李 ,to express our respect . To understand this, you must understand Chinese culture. In China, we are more respectful to the old people because they are more experienced and often have paid a whole life to support the family. So gradually, the old (老，pinyin:Lao) become a positive word when we call someone. For example, We call as “老爷”the householder of nobility or the rich in ancient China. Nowadays, when we use 老 to call someone, though it still express respectful,it focuses more on the close relationship between someone and us. So 老外 pinyin ：laowai is absolutely a good word if you just consider the word itself, because polite or impolite depends on the context and speaking tones not 老外. About the rudeness that we didn’t call foreigners’ name even if we are told the name, it’s because on the one hand, foreigners’ name is difficult for native Chinese to remember , even to pronounce. On the other hand, first name is less important than last name in our culture, which is why we call “lao+last name ”instead of others,so in some degree, 外 wai is just like foreigners’ last name and we use laowai just totally like laowang (Lao+wang). If you want to learn more about Chinese culture, I am very glad to share cause there are too many misunderstandings about our culture , partly because of political reason. But I hope the politics never affect the mutual understanding of people in different country. Government can be different but people are more same than we thought.

Answer 5

What's the difference between 朋友 and 老朋友？Does the latter carry a "friendlier", "closer" connection or relationship? If so, why? Is it due to the 老?

The 老 when used generally in a Chinese cultural context has a positive connotation.

If a negative connotation is deliberately attached to any word, whether by tone of voice or context or physical gestures, then almost any word in any language could carry a negative connotation if so intended.

Thus, I submit, that 老外 has, on its own, a neutral connotation, carrying the meaning, colloquially, of someone who is from a country outside of China.

In South East Asian countries, like Malaysia and Singapore, this term is also used, colloquially, to refer to foreigners as well. No negative connotation there, unless intended otherwise by way of context, tone of voice.

However, the term 佬 does carry some negative connotation. It is also pronounced with a slight inflection to distinguish it from 老. An example of a negative use of 佬 is 乡村佬, meaning a "country bumpkin" or a "hillbilly"

Answer 6

as you metioned, "Wikipedia saying that 老 is added to indicate that a foreigner is "always" an outsider".is totally wrong.Chinese has never ever use 老:LAO before person or object to imply "always".when use |老:lao" to mean "always",it's use just as*always* .just think there isn't something like"always person" in English.so you can image there isn't something like “a foreigner is "always" an outsider” in Chinese.Baidu is more familiar with Chinese than wiki,it's native Chinese.so you can accept the explanation of "老外".