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Gook

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Gook (/ˈɡuːk/ or /ˈɡʊk/) is a derogatory term for Asians which came to prominence during war time.[1] Originally used to refer to prostitutes,[2] the term was later employed by American military stationed around the world as a pejorative for native people.[3][4] It acquired its current status as a derogatory word for Asians during the Korean and Vietnam wars.[1]

Origin and development

A slang dictionary published in 1893 defined "gook" as "a low prostitute".[2] "The Marines who occupied Nicaragua in 1912 took to calling the natives gooks", according to H. L. Mencken.[5] Marines serving in Haiti in 1915 to 1920 used the term to refer to Haitians.

It has been suggested that gook comes from the Korean word "국" (guk), meaning "country",[6] "한국" (hanguk), meaning "Korea", or "미국" (miguk), meaning "America".[7] For example, during the Korean War, American soldiers might have heard locals saying miguk, referring to Americans, and misinterpreted this as "Me gook."[8] These etymologies ignore the fact that there are many examples of the word's use that before the 1950s. So prevalent was the use of the word gook during the Korean War that US General Douglas MacArthur banned its use, for fear that Asians would become alienated to the United Nations Command because of the insult.[1][9]

In Frank Capra's Flight (1929), the word was spoken by a U.S. Marine stationed in Nicaragua. It was used again in the Korean War movie The Steel Helmet (1951)[10][nb 1] as well as numerous movies and books depicting the Vietnam War.[nb 2]

In U.S. usage, "gook" refers particularly to Communist soldiers during the Vietnam War. It is generally considered highly offensive. In a highly publicized incident, Senator John McCain used the word during the 2008 presidential campaign to refer to his former captors, then apologized to the Vietnamese community at large.[11] "I hate the gooks. I will hate them as long as I live… I was referring to my prison guards and I will continue to refer to them in language that might offend."[11]

Citations

  • 1893 Slang and its Analogues, GOOK, subs. (American). A low prostitute. For synonyms, see BARRACK HACK and TART.[2]
  • 1920 The Nation, The Haitians in whose service United States marines are presumably restoring peace and order in Haiti are nicknamed "Gooks"...[12]
  • 1923 Le Slang, gook, a tramp: low:[13]
  • 1935 American Speech, Gook, anyone who speaks Spanish, particularly a Filipino.[14] [Note: This incorrectly assumes that Filipinos speak Spanish.]
  • 1945 The American Language, The Marines who occupied Nicaragua in 1912 took to calling the natives gooks, one of their names for Filipinos.[5]
  • 1947 New York Herald Tribune, The American troops...don’t like the Koreans – whom they prefer to call ‘Gooks’ – and, in the main, they don’t like Korea.[14]
  • 1950 Dimension X - The Potters of Firsk, (Radio Show July 28, 1950 from the story by Jack Vance) Used multiple times by the Earthling supervisor to describe the indigenous population of planet Firsk.
  • 1950 The Kansas City Star, "General MacArthur’s headquarters frowns on the practice of calling North Koreans "gooks." An article in the official magazine Tips says the person who uses the word is unwittingly guilty of giving aid and comfort to the enemy."[9]
  • 1960 Dictionary of American Slang, gook Generically, a native of the Pacific islands, Africa, Japan, China, Korea or any European country except England; usually a brown-skinned or Oriental non-Christian.[3]
  • 1967 Doobie Doo, A gook in the purest sense is anybody what ain’t American.[4]
  • 2000 John McCain referred to his Vietnamese wartime experience, “I hate the gooks. I will hate them as long as I live… I was referring to my prison guards and I will continue to refer to them in language that might offend.” [11]
  • 2008 Gran Torino (film), Walt Kowalski: "I'm no hero. I was just trying to get that babbling gook off my lawn!"

Notes

  1. ^ For another pre-Vietnam Korean reference, see The Hook (1963).
  2. ^ These include Rolling Thunder (film) (1977), Platoon (1986), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Hamburger Hill (1987), Good Morning Vietnam (1988), and Strawberry Fields (1997). See also the novel Word of Honor (1985) by Nelson DeMille, p. 590.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Gook: The Short History of an Americanism". Monthly Review. March 1992.
  2. ^ a b c Farmer, John S.; Henley, W. E. (1893). Slang and its Analogues, Past and Present. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  3. ^ a b "gook Generically, a native of the Pacific islands, Africa, Japan, China, Korea or almost any European country except England; usually a brown-skinned or Oriental non-Christian: 1951 Gook was used during World War 2 at many widely separated stations to refer to natives Word Study May 7/1," (Wentworth, Harold and Stuart Berg Flexner, Dictionary of American Slang, (1960)). Cite error: The named reference "Flexner" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Karp, Ivan, Doobie Doo 1967, p. 97.
  5. ^ a b Dickson, Paul, War Slang, (2004), p. 29. Dickson cites Mencken's The American Language, Supplement 1 (1945).
  6. ^ Cao, Lan; Novas, Himilce (1996). Everything You Need to Know About Asian-American History. p. 250. Gook, the American racial epithet for all Asian Americans, is actually the Korean word for 'country. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  7. ^ Lee, Robert G. (1999). Orientals: Asian Americans in Popular Culture. A bastardization of the Korean "Hanguk" (Korean), or Miguk (American)" {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  8. ^ Trans-Pacific Relations: America, Europe, and Asia in the Twentieth Century. 2003. p. 117. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  9. ^ a b "Use of Word "Gook" Is Opposed by MacArthur". The Kansas City Star. 12 September 1950.
  10. ^ The Steel Helmet, 1951.
  11. ^ a b c Ma, Jason, "McCain Apologizes for ‘Gook’ Comment", Asiaweek,, February 24, 2000.
  12. ^ Seligman, Herbert J., The Conquest of Haiti, The Nation, July 10, 1920.
  13. ^ Manchon, J., Le Slang, Lexique de L'anglais Familier Et Vulgaire (1923). Cited in A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (1984) by Eric Partridge and Paul Beale, p. 489, "gook".
  14. ^ a b Pearson, Kim, "Gook".
  15. ^ "Soldiers revive "gook" as name for Korea reds". Los Angeles Times. 6 August 1950. p. 6.
  16. ^ "Memorable quotes for Team America: World Police" (2004).
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