Yusuke
Is "Indian giver" a common expression? I had never heard of it...Thank you in advance.
Feb 28, 2021 2:56 PM
Answers · 6
2
Outdated and offensive.
February 28, 2021
1
Hi Yusuke! It is an outdated term that is offensively racist in current times. The term is biased against indigenous people of North America. I would eliminate it from my vocabulary. That's my suggestion.
February 28, 2021
Please see what others from North America have written. I think I can tell you WHY this term came about. It started as a cultural misunderstanding that become a problem. It relates to when the British, Americans and Canadians met the indigenous people of North America, who they called Indians. In the Britain, US and Canada if it was your birthday, you would get presents from your guests. You expect this and this is perfectly natural. In other cultures of course, you simply can’t have one-sided giving, it would be wrong and bad mannered. It has to be an exchange of presents. They expect this, and it is perfectly natural. The problem is where one culture with one way of giving meets the other culture. Both think the other side has bad manners and is selfish and untrustworthy. Once you think that, it is very difficult to change. What is very funny now of course is that birthday guests now expect party bags when they leave, which is very close to an exchange of gifts! I can only imagine that you are reading an old book, or the person speaking this has what might politely be called “old fashioned ideas”. I hope this helps.
February 28, 2021
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