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Gook ( or ) is a derogatory term for Asians. It was originally predominantly used by the US military during war time, especially during the Korean and Vietnam wars.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Gook: The Short History of an Americanism )〕 ==Etymology and use== The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that the origin of the current usage is unknown.〔 There are three suggested possible origins: * An earlier usage of ''gook'', meaning "prostitute", recorded in a slang dictionary published in 1893, which defined ''gook'' as "a low prostitute"; a similar meaning was recorded for ''gooh'' in 1859. This later came to imply a foolish or peculiar person.〔 The ''goo-goo'' term, whose origins are similarly uncertain, was first used in 1899 by US troops in the Philippine–American War, although ''nigger'' was more prevalent. * That when American servicemen heard the term during the Korean war, they heard the word as 'gook" instead of k(g)uk which means "national" (maybe, thus, interpreted as nationalist) ''goo-goo'' (also ''gugu''), a term used by the US military to describe Filipinos. * That "gook" comes from the Korean word "국" (''guk''), meaning "country", "한국" (''hanguk''), meaning "Korea", or "미국" (''miguk''), meaning "America". For example, American soldiers might have heard locals saying ''miguk,'' referring to Americans, and misinterpreted this as "Me gook." Mencken reports the earliest use of the word ''gook'': he wrote that US marines occupying Nicaragua in 1912 took to calling the natives ''gooks'' and that it had previously been a term for Filipinos. He further mentions that the natives of Costa Rica are sometimes called ''goo-goos''. The first written use was in 1920 and mentions that the marines occupying Haiti used the term to refer to Haitians. US occupation troops in Korea after World War II called the Koreans "gooks".〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Gook )〕 After the return of US troops to the Korean peninsula, so prevalent was the use of the word gook during the first months of the Korean War that US General Douglas MacArthur banned its use, for fear that Asians would become alienated to the United Nations Command because of the insult.〔〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Use of Word "Gook" Is Opposed by MacArthur )〕 Although mainly used to describe non-European foreigners, especially Asians, it has been used to describe foreigners in general, including Italians in 1944, Indians, Lebanese and Turks in the '70s, and Arabs in 1988.〔 This dual usage is similar to the offensive word wog in British English. In modern US usage, "gook" refers particularly to Communist soldiers during the Vietnam War. It is generally considered to be highly offensive. In a highly publicized incident, Senator John McCain used the word during the 2000 presidential campaign to refer to his former captors: "I hate the gooks. I will hate them as long as I live… I was referring to my prison guards and I will continue to refer to them in language that might offend." He later apologized to the Vietnamese community at large.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=McCain Apologizes for 'Gook' Comment )〕 The term has been used by non-US militaries, notably the Rhodesian forces during the Rhodesian Bush War, where it was used interchangeably with ''terr'' and ''terrorist'' to describe the guerrillas,〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Ironing the lawn in Salisbury, Rhodesia )〕 and by Australian forces during the Vietnam War.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gook」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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