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How do you feel about the Korean term "Black hyung/Black noona"?


Kevin Bacon

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So one of the many popular slangs used in Korea today is "í‘형/Black Hyung" and "í‘누나/Black Noona."

 

 

It was originally a term of endearment used to call black people in Korea, using the honorifics "hyung/noona" to describe them as cool, awesome, swag (in both the "level of coolness and swagger we non-black people can't reach" sense and stereotypical "hiphop" sense), etc.

 

But nowadays it seems to be used more than the actual term "Black person" with "Black hyung/Black Noona" being now synonymous with it.

 

 

Some Black people in Korea have adopted the term and wear shirts and hats that say "Black hyung/Black Noona." (For example, Hyuna's black backup dancer was seen wearing a shirt that said "í‘누나/Black Noona" in her reality TV show Free Month.)

 

 

Though the term is originally meant to be a praise, there are issues with it. It enforces stereotypes, whether they are positive or not, and is not really a politically correct term.

 

 

So how do you feel about the terms "Black Hyung"/"Black Noona"?

 

 

 

 

 

Personally, I don't like the concept of describing people by race so I have my own issues with the two terms and refrain from using it.

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i mean if you are referring to somebody random like "the black hyung down the street" i think it's fine. bc i say "that white girl/boy" etc when im referring to people i dont know and i always found it weird when people refuse to acknowledge race

 

i dont like the stereotypes part but i also think a lot of western people gripe at stereotypes while refusing to acknowledge they can sometimes enforce them as well and this carries over to other cultures.

 

edit: a good example is this thread where several comments imply that black guys have bigger dicks (and get upvoted for it). now, if a knetz said "black guys have bigger dicks" or (as i've read) some prostitutes refusing/fearing having sex with foreign customers due to reservations about penis size, they would be described as ignorant at best and racist at worst. yet the sentiment is carried on among inetz. we dont exist in a bubble.

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i don't see why non-black people who aren't even living in korea should be worried about this. it's not up to any of you and none of you can do anything in the first place tbh.

 

also, i've never heard of anything describing randoms they see as hyung/noona unless there is at least more context behind their relationships.

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i don't see why non-black people who aren't even living in korea should be worried about this. it's not up to any of you and none of you can do anything in the first place tbh.

 

also, i've never heard of anything describing randoms they see as hyung/noona unless there is at least more context behind their relationships.

 

I was curious since the reaction to the term black hyung was negative in one of the threads I have seen today. I mean yeah we can't do anything about it but it doesn't hurt to know people feel about it here.

 

For this second part, I generally mean online. Most posts/videos/photos today say "Black Hyung/Black Noona does...." instead of "Black person does ..." or the actual name of the Black person (when in some cases, the person has quite the fame.)

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the stereotype is a positive stereotype (like wow black noona you're great, as expected of black ppl etc) like how black people are good at singing & dancing & sports? as a black person I dont mind positive stereotypes.

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I personally don't see anything wrong with it, as long as it's not a term to negatively describe people. I come from another Asian country, and political correctness isn't really a thing there. There are terms like that, but the one you're referring to is intended to be a compliment. I wouldn't worry about it :) 

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