Bule () is an
Indonesian
Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to:
* Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia
** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago
** Indonesian ...
word for foreigners and/or non-Indonesian national, specifically people of
European descent
White is a racialized classification of people and a skin color specifier, generally used for people of European origin, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, and point of view.
Description of populations as " ...
('
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
', '
Caucasian
Caucasian may refer to:
Anthropology
*Anything from the Caucasus region
**
**
** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus region
*
*
*
Languages
* Northwest Caucasian l ...
').
Etymology
The word was in use in the 19th century and probably earlier, meaning 'white', when referring to buffalo. An 1840 book noted that people preferred 'bulei' (white) buffalo to 'hitam' (which is the current Indonesian word for black).
An 1869 Malay-Dutch dictionary notes the words 'balar', 'sabun' and 'andan' as referring to 'white people' (wit mensch) and 'albinos'. An 1894 Malay-English dictionary noted the words 'andan' and 'bulei' as referring to albinos, and 'sabun' (a word in current usage as soap) as an adjective for all-white dogs, and for albinos. The word 'balar' is given as an adjective meaning white in the context of buffalos, and also albinos.
A 1948 Javanese Indonesian dictionary notes boelé, balar and boelai as a suffix to the Javanese 'wong' or 'person', in Indonesian 'orang balar' or 'orang saboen'.
Subsequent dictionaries may define 'bule' simply as
albino
Albinism is the congenital absence of melanin in an animal or plant resulting in white hair, feathers, scales and skin and pink or blue eyes. Individuals with the condition are referred to as albino.
Varied use and interpretation of the term ...
. However, in current usage the English loanword, albino is more commonly used.
Usage
In spoken form, the word may be used by street vendors to attract tourists or foreigners' attention. Because some Westerners find the word insulting, more cautious street vendors use the term ''Mister'', which foreigners find more polite.
As an alternative to 'bule', the adjective 'barat' (literally means west, as in Western) may be an alternative. Compare with
güero
Güero may refer to:
People
* El Güero Gil (d. 1999), nickname for Alfredo Gil, Mexican guitarist/vocalist, co-founder of trio Los Panchos and inventor of the Requinto guitar
* El Güero Jaibo (d. 1993), aka Juan Francisco Murillo Díaz, a mem ...
.
As a word for foreigner, the term can have pejorative intent, and many Westerners residing in Indonesia find it stereotypical and offensive.
See also
*
Laowai ''Laowai'' is the Pinyin pronunciation/transliteration of (pinyin: ''lǎowài'', lit. "old foreign"), an informal term or slang for "foreigner" and/or non-Chinese national, usually neutral but possibly impolite or loose in some circumstances. ...
, in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
*
Gaijin
is a Japanese word for foreigners and non-Japanese citizens in Japan, specifically being applied to foreigners of non-Japanese ethnicity and those from the Japanese diaspora who are not Japanese citizens. The word is composed of two kanji: and ...
, in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
*
Pendatang
"Pendatang asing", "orang pendatang" or "pendatang" is a common Malay phrase used to refer to foreigners or immigrants; "pendatang asing" literally means "foreign comer" or "foreign immigrant". Although most frequently used to refer to foreign i ...
and
Mat Salleh
''Mat Salleh'' is a Malay term used as a colloquial expression to refer to white people. The exact origins of the expression are difficult to ascertain, due to there being several versions of the term's origin being passed down via word of mou ...
, in
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
*
Ang mo, in
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
*
Gweilo
''Gweilo'' or (, pronounced ) is a common Cantonese slang term for Westerners. In the absence of modifiers, it refers to white people and has a history of racially deprecatory and pejorative use. Cantonese speakers frequently use to refer to ...
, in
Southern China
South China () is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is that most of its citizens are not n ...
,
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
and
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
*
Farang
Farang ( fa, فرنگ) is a Persian (and Southeast Asian) word that originally referred to the Franks (the major Germanic tribe) and later came to refer to White Europeans in general. The word "Farang" is a cognate and originates from Old F ...
, in
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
References
External links
Bule
{{Ethnic slurs
Pejorative terms for in-group non-members
Indonesian words and phrases
Slang