Nucai

Nucai (Chinese: 奴才; pinyin: Núcái; Manchu: ᠠᡥᠠ Aha) is a Chinese term that can be translated as, 'lackey', 'yes-man', 'servant', 'slave', or a 'person of unquestioning obedience'. It originated in the tribes of northeastern China as a negative and derogatory term, often reserved for insult for someone perceived to be useless or incompetent. However, it was used most prominently in the Qing dynasty as a deprecatory first-person pronoun by Manchu officials at court when addressing the Emperor. Han Chinese officials were forbidden from using the term for self-address; they used "chen" (Chinese: 臣) instead.

During the Qing dynasty, addressing oneself as nucai became a sort of 'privilege' reserved for ethnic Manchu officials. Officials of Han Chinese origin were forbidden to address themselves as nucai, and must address themselves as chen (臣, literally "your subject"). The rule was applied both in written and spoken situations. Such a rule surrounding the term nucai reflected that the relationship between Manchu officials and the Emperor as that between "master and servant" in a household, while that between Han Chinese officials and the Emperor as simply between ruler and subject. The equivalent Manchu term for nucai is booi aha. The exclusivity of the term nucai meant that Han Chinese officials are given lower status at court, even though chen was historically considered as a more prestigious form of self-address.

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