A houseboy (alternatively spelled as ''houseboi'') was a term which referred to a typically male

domestic worker A domestic worker or domestic servant is a person who works within the scope of a residence. The term "domestic service" applies to the equivalent occupational category. In traditional English contexts, such a person was said to be "in service ...

or personal assistant who performed cleaning and other forms of personal chores. The term has a record of being used in the British Empire, military slang, and the male

LGBT community The LGBT community (also known as the LGBTQ+ community, GLBT community, gay community, or queer community) is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay men, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and other queer individuals united by a comm ...

British Empire

Historically, houseboy was a term used in the British Empire for a male domestic servant. He was usually, but not always, a native person who worked for a British family living in the non-British regions of the empire. A female housecleaner was termed a housegirl. Both sexes often wore uniform, due to their status as domestic servants.

Military slang

Houseboy was also used as an American slang term originating in the Second World War for a young teenager who helped American soldiers perform basic responsibilities like cleaning, laundry, ironing, shoe-shining, running errands, etc. The British English term for this occupation was '

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

Gay culture

A houseboy, as used by members of the

, refers to a young man who performs domestic work, where the employment normally has an erotic, though not necessarily sexual, aspect.

In popular culture

Houseboys have become a plot device or

stock character A stock character, also known as a character archetype, is a fictional character in a work of art such as a novel, play, or a film whom audiences recognize from frequent recurrences in a particular literary tradition. There is a wide range of st ...

in literature and

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

. * The cartoon character

Mr. Magoo Mr. Magoo (known by his full name: J. Quincy Magoo) is a fictional cartoon character created at the UPA animation studio in 1949. Voiced by Jim Backus, Mr. Magoo is an elderly, wealthy, short-statured retiree who gets into a series of comical ...

had a houseboy. *''The Houseboy'', a 1973 stage play by Irving Wardle, was produced by

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

in 1982. *''The Houseboy'', a 2007 LGBT film starring Nick May. *''

Houseboy A houseboy (alternatively spelled as ''houseboi'') was a term which referred to a typically male domestic worker or personal assistant who performed cleaning and other forms of personal chores. The term has a record of being used in the British ...

'', a novel written by Cameroonian diplomat

Ferdinand Oyono Ferdinand Léopold Oyono (14 September 1929 – 10 June 2010
''Jeune ...

about a young African boy during the period of

French colonial rule The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas colonies, protectorates and mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "First French Colonial Empire", that exist ...

. *'' Bachelor Father'', a 1957–62 American TV series starring John Forsythe and Sammee Tong as his Chinese houseboy. *'' The Birdcage'', a 1996 film that featured Hank Azaria as Agador, the flamboyant houseboy for the openly gay couple played by Robin Williams and Nathan Lane.

References

{{Wiktionary Domestic work Gay culture

British Empire

Military slang

Gay culture

In popular culture

See also

References