- Joined
- Nov 4, 2017
Oriental, aka "The East" used to refer to the Ottoman Empire and Persia and technically all the way to China & Indochina. The specific context was essentially so eastern that Europe had no direct contact with it. As the Ottomans never really made it into India, and direct contact was had with the Russians the term never really applied to north-central or subcontinent Asiatic people. Well, people is wrong - Oriental until the end of the 1800s usually refered to Objects, Customs, and Cultures and not people.
That is the Ottoman Empire & satellite cultures used to cover too many racial groups for the term to apply to race or physical characteristics beyond darker hair and a bronzed complexion.
Over time as the Ottoman empire shrank and Europe started having direct contact with east-asia via the sea, Oriental began to apply Sino & Indo-china people, with a definition eventually codified to (essentially) the Qing empire and people of similar location and appearance.
The only problem I have known people (who aren't white liberals looking to be offended) to have is Oriental is Asians when its used to group them in with those other, bad Asians. So Oriental food: Fine. Oriental to refer to other Asian races: fine. Oriental to also group their ethnic hertiage with those shit-tier chinks: WTF I'm not Oriental.
My friends 2nd Generation Chinese girlfriend near got into a fist fight with someone who called her Korean. You can't tell the difference, but they can.
That is the Ottoman Empire & satellite cultures used to cover too many racial groups for the term to apply to race or physical characteristics beyond darker hair and a bronzed complexion.
Over time as the Ottoman empire shrank and Europe started having direct contact with east-asia via the sea, Oriental began to apply Sino & Indo-china people, with a definition eventually codified to (essentially) the Qing empire and people of similar location and appearance.
The only problem I have known people (who aren't white liberals looking to be offended) to have is Oriental is Asians when its used to group them in with those other, bad Asians. So Oriental food: Fine. Oriental to refer to other Asian races: fine. Oriental to also group their ethnic hertiage with those shit-tier chinks: WTF I'm not Oriental.
My friends 2nd Generation Chinese girlfriend near got into a fist fight with someone who called her Korean. You can't tell the difference, but they can.