Gweilo

Gweilo or gwai lo (; Cantonese gwai2 lou2, pronounced [kʷɐ̌i lǒu]) is a common Cantonese slang term for Westerners. In its unmodified form, it applies only to European ethnicities and has a history of racially deprecatory use. Cantonese speakers frequently use "gweilo" to refer to Westerners in general use, in a non-derogatory context, although whether this type of usage is offensive is disputed by both Cantonese and Westerners alike.

Gwei (, gui) means "ghost", and lo () means a man, regular guy, a chap or a bloke. The term gweilo therefore literally means "ghost man", and is sometimes translated into English as "foreign devil". Historically, Chinese people had the image of its borders continuously breached by "uncivilized tribes" given to mayhem and destruction, and they considered these people the Four Barbarians. In the 16th century, when European sailors appeared in southern China, they were also similarly regarded as barbarians and given derogatory names. In Chinese, "ghost" can be a derogatory term used as a curse or an insult, and the word "ghost" had been used to describe foreigners. For example, a 17th-century writer from Canton wrote that Africans "look like ghosts", and gui nu (ghost slave) was once used to describe African slaves.

The term gweilo or gwailo to describe whites (Westerners) was popularised during the First and Second Opium Wars in response to the Unequal Treaties. In Southern parts of China, the term gwai lo was used. In Northern parts of China, the term "west ocean ghost" (西洋鬼子 xiyang guizi) was used, Europe being West of China. Although originally derogatory, gwai is now considered by some to be an acceptable generic term for Westerners in Hong Kong. For example, gwai poh means a Caucasian woman, gwai mui a Caucasian girl, and gwai jai a Caucasian child. Gweilo has now been recognised as simply referring to foreigners, especially westerners, in South East Asia and now appears in the Oxford Dictionary defined as such.

...
Wikipedia