Talk:老外

Pinyin

Please add pinyin with tone marks, as in other similar articles on Chinese words. Badagnani 03:46, 4 June 2006 (UTC)

usage notes

Perhaps more should be said about where this term stands in the food chain of Chinese words for foreigner. I have always thought of 老外 in the same way as the Hawaiian word haole. That is to say, it can be neutral or offensive depending on the context. To my ears, from positive to negative:

1. 外国朋友 (wàiguó péngyou) very diplomatic
2. 外国人 (wàiguórén) somewhat neutral
3. 老外 (lǎowài) neutral (slightly humorous) or offensive depending on context
4. 洋鬼子 (yángguǐzi) literally "foreign devils"

A-cai 08:18, 4 June 2006 (UTC)

especially

@Justinrleung (Withdrawn) --Geographyinitiative (talk) 00:59, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

Asking native speakers about their perception of the word 老外? —Suzukaze-c (talk) 01:00, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

@Geographyinitiative: I just felt that it would not be weird to call non-white foreigner, e.g. a Black person, 老外. Not specifying is probably the best for this entry. — justin(r)leung _{{ (t...) | c=› }} 01:02, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

(Withdrawn) --Geographyinitiative (talk) 01:02, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

Definitely. Unless we find a reliable source, being less specific is the best option imo. — justin(r)leung _{{ (t...) | c=› }} 01:11, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

@Geographyinitiative, Justinrleung: Rejoice, for in about 30 seconds of searching I found an academic article (now added to the entry). It's not hard... —Μετάknowledge^{discuss/deeds} 01:24, 15 July 2020 (UTC)

@Metaknowledge: Nice, thanks! — justin(r)leung _{{ (t...) | c=› }} 01:26, 15 July 2020 (UTC)