Chinese

Noun

紅毛

1. red hair (on animals)
2. (derogatory, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, chiefly Hokkien) a red-haired person; by extension, a Caucasian person, a white person; ang moh

Derived terms

Japanese

Etymology 1

Possibly coined in Japan of Middle Chinese-derived elements 紅 ‎(kō, “red, crimson”) +‎ 毛 ‎(mō, “hair”).

Alternately, possibly from Middle Chinese compound 紅毛 ‎(*hung *mɑu).

Compare modern Chinese simplified 红毛 and traditional 紅毛 ‎(hóngmáo).

Pronunciation

• On'yomi
• こうもう (Heiban)^[1]
• IPA^(key): [ko̞ːmo̞ː]

Noun

紅毛 ‎(hiragana こうもう, romaji kōmō)

1. red hair
2. during the Edo period, an epithet for the Dutch, contrasting with the term 南蛮 ‎(nanban, literally “Southern barbarians”) used for the Spanish and Portuguese
3. in modern times, an epithet for Westerners or Europeans

Synonyms

• (red hair): 赤毛 (あかげ, ​akage) (more general term for a redhead)

Derived terms

Etymology 2

By extension from the red hair meaning being applied to the Dutch, used as jukujikun for オランダ ‎(Oranda, “Holland”).^[2]

Pronunciation

• Kan'yōyomi
• IPA^(key): [o̞ɾ̠ã̠nda̠]

Proper noun

紅毛 ‎(hiragana おらんだ, romaji Oranda)

1. (obsolete) Holland, the Netherlands

Usage notes

This reading was used primarily during the Edo period, and has since fallen out of use.

References

1. ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
2. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan