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Orient

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The Orient is an antiquated term traditionally used in Western culture to refer to the Middle East, South Asia and East Asia.

Derivation

The term "Orient" is derived from the Latin word oriens meaning "east" (lit. "rising" < orior "rise"). The use of the word for "rising" to refer to the East (where the sun rises) has analogs from many languages: compare the terms "Levant" (< French levant "rising"), "Anatolia" (< Greek anatole), and "The Land of the Rising Sun" to refer to Japan.

The opposite term "Occident" is derived from the Latin word occidens meaning "west" (lit. "setting" <"occido" "fall/set"). This term was once used to describe the West (where the sun sets), but is slowly falling into disuse.

Usage of term

File:Map of orient.jpg
Map of the world: Orient - Blue for Middle East, Red for Indosphere, and Green for Sinosphere; Purple for Occident; Orange for other civilizational areas including Viking, Mesoamerica, and Polynesia

Traditionally, the Orient referred primarily to the cultures and countries of what are now considered the Middle East. This particularly included regions that used to be known as Persia, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Egypt. As awareness of the countries of Eastern Asia grew in Western European and American consciousness in the late 19th century, the term came to refer to China, Japan, Korea, and surrounding nations; remnants of the older conception of the Orient still exist in the English language in such collocations as Oriental rug and Oriental harem.

"Oriental" has been used by the West as a term to describe cultures, countries, peoples and goods from the Orient. Oriental is also used as an adjective akin to "eastern", especially in the Spanish-speaking world. For example, the Philippine island Mindoro is divided into two provinces whose titles include the words "oriental" and "occidental" respectively. Uruguay used to be known as the República Oriental del Uruguay because it was located to the east of the Rio de la Plata.

Perceptions and connotations

Although oriental is generally considered a neutral term in the United Kingdom, other parts of the Commonwealth and most of Europe,[citation needed] there is some controversy regarding the connotations and implications of the term in North America. According to Abdurrahman R. Squires "politically correct terms have taken the place of the word 'Orientalism'". [1] According to The Official Politically Correct Dictionary and Handbook the term is offensive and should be avoided. [2] Diane Ravitch, a former assistant secretary of education under Clinton and Bush(considered by many to be "one of the country's most spirited and respected education analysts" [3]) has documented a series of images and depictions which are banned from textbooks and references. Supporters of the traditional usage of the term oriental are frightened by how easy it is to ban a word from American textbooks. Toby Merrill of the Yale Book Review states:

All it takes to forever banish a word or image from schools across the nation is a well-placed, vocal group to lobby the Board of Education in either of these states. It is in the California market that publishers feel the most pressure from the left. [4]

Laurie Morrow, a former Salvatori Fellow of the Heritage Foundation and professor of English mocked proponents of political correctness and attempt to imply extreme sarcasm when she wrote the following in support of traditional usage of the term oriental:

Although the Japanese proudly consider themselves eastern--from the Land of the Rising Sun (remember that World War II flag?)--don't call them "Oriental," for this is Eurocentric, and one should have no center in the happy world of cultural equivalence. (One wonders whether the language police would object to a Tokyo resident's using the term Occidental?)[5]

However, those who support traditional usage of words and terms do not support an end to all sensitivity. Sybil Maimin writes:

Ravitch does not call for elimination of bias and sensitivity panels but rather for their work, now behind closed doors, to be open to public view. She believes that teachers or school districts rather than state officials should choose books for the classroom, which would decrease the power of pressure groups and lessen uniformity. She has confidence that “language evolves in response to social change. Lots of words disappear naturally,” [6]

Thus, a number of reference works used in the United States describe Oriental as pejorative, antiquated or offensive in some instances, the American Heritage Book of English Usage notes that

It is worth remembering, though, that Oriental is not an ethnic slur to be avoided in all situations. It is most objectionable in contemporary contexts and when used as a noun, as in "the appointment of an Oriental to head the commission". In these cases Asian (or a more specific term such as Vietnamese, Korean, or Asian American, if appropriate) is the only acceptable term. But in certain historical contexts, or when its exotic connotations are integral to the topic, Oriental remains a useful term.[7]

Random House's Guide to Sensitive Language states "Other words (e.g., Oriental, colored) are outdated or inaccurate." This Guide to Sensitive Language suggests the use of "Asian or more specific designation such as Pacific Islander, Chinese American, [or] Korean." [8] Merriam-Webster describes the term as "sometimes offensive,"[9] Encarta states that when the term is used as a noun it is considered " a highly offensive term for somebody from East Asia" [10] However, the same reference also defines the adjectival usage as "relating to East Asia (dated)" or "high quality".

Use by organizations, government, and businesses

The term is used on a great number of governmental documents and websites across in the United States describing place names [11], medicine[12][13], wildlife [14][15] plants[16], food[17][18] and people [19][20][21] or communities.[22][23][24][25][26][27][28] The term is even found on Equal Opportunity Employment[29] and Fair Housing [30] documents. Conversely, at least two state legislatures have passed or proposed legislation declaring a preference for terms other than Oriental in official documents. A finding by the Washington State legislature held that "the use of the term 'Oriental' when used to refer to persons of Asian descent is outdated and pejorative. There is a need to make clear that the term 'Asian' is preferred terminology, and that this more modern and nonpejorative term must be used to replace outdated terminology."[31] In 2005, the California senate mandated that the terms "oriental massage" and "oriental medicine" in existing statutes be changed to "Asian medicine" and "Asian massage." [32] Despite this "mandate," businesses and schools across California and the country continue to employ the term. [33] [34] [35] [36] California has not purged the term from current documents or websites and the term remains on many pages which display "© 2007 State of California". [37] [38] [39] [40] [41]

Many universities no longer accept the usage of the term Oriental when describing people. [42] However, the American Oriental Society and many others continue to use the term in its publishings. [43][44][45][46] The term is common in older universities, such as the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies, and the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute; the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge both have a Faculty of Oriental Studies that focuses on the Middle East, East Asia, and South Asia.

Businesses such as Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, Mandarin Oriental, Oriental Financial Group, Inc.,Orient Thai Airlines, Orient Steam Navigation Company, Orient Watch Co., Neptune Orient Lines are examples of enterprises that share this term as a part of their name. The Oriental Food Association [47], Oriental Bellydancer Association [48][49], The Association of Oriental Arts [50], the Shriners [51][52] and other social groups continue to use the term. The American Association of Oriental Medicine and many other state-specific associations of oriental medicine still use the term. [53] The World Wide Web has a profusion of "oriental" pornography and so-called mail order bride sites that exploit stereotypes as well desperate individuals on both sides of the transaction. [54][55][56] The Oriental Martial Arts College and other martial arts organizations employ the term regularly. [57][58][59]

According to the FBI, some Asian gangs, the "OPB" ("Oriental Playboys"), and the ORB ("Oriental Rutheless Boys"), refer to themselves as oriental. [60][61]

Regional Variations

Major objections to the use of the word "Oriental" are chiefly limited to certain elements in North America. Its use is not controversial in Europe, where the word is neutral and in widespread usage as evidenced by its usage on the online British Monarchy Media Centre.[62] In France the terms "l'Occident" and "l'Orient" are used without any negative associations in academic contexts. In Europe the term is often used to describe such things as the East's cuisine and goods, ancient culture, and religions, at times to denote an exotic quality with upmarket or mildly positive connotations. In the UK the term "Asian" has become almost exclusively tied to the Indian subcontinent, as evidenced through BBC Asian Network, a radio station of the BBC devoted to the British Asian community.

Those who believe the term is derogatory or archaic prefer to employ geographical terms for people and places typically desribed by oriental, e.g., South Asia, East Asia, and South-East Asia. Although the Far Eastern is considered more politically correct than Oriental, East Asian is preferred because this verbiage is significantly less Eurocentric. Other politically correct alternative terms include Asia and the Pacific or the Pacific Rim or the Pacific Basin.

With regard to the now antiquated sense of the Orient, referring to the wider Islamic region, the Orientalist Marshall Hogdson tried to introduce several terms[citation needed], including Nile-to-Oxus. None of these have stuck, however.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ http://www.muslim-answers.org/orientalism.htm
  2. ^ Beard, Henry and Cerf, Christopher. The Official Politically Correct Dictionary and Handbook. New York: Villard Books, 1993.
  3. ^ http://www.sacbee.com/content/opinion/story/6184665p-7139626c.html%20%7C Sacramento Bee, February 27, 2003 "Editorial: Policing the vocabulary Textbook sensitivity goes fanatic"
  4. ^ http://www.yalereviewofbooks.com/archive/summer03/review12.shtml.htm Yale Book Review
  5. ^ http://www.worldandi.com/newhome/public/2003/September/bk2pub.asp
  6. ^ http://www.educationupdate.com/archives/2003/june03/issue/spot_ravitch.html Education Update
  7. ^ "Asian." The American Heritage Book of English Usage [1]
  8. ^ "Race, Ethnicity, and National Origin." Sensitive Language. Random House
  9. ^ "Oriental." Merriam-Webster
  10. ^ "Oriental." [2]
  11. ^ http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/about/pr2004/pr04_61.html
  12. ^ http://www.acupuncture.ca.gov/pubs_forms/cons_guide_2002.pdf
  13. ^ http://www.health.gov/nhic/NHICScripts/Entry.cfm?HRCode=HR2824
  14. ^ http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-IMPACT/2003/January/Day-10/i491.htm
  15. ^ Species Profile: Oriental white stork by US Fish & Wildlife Service
  16. ^ http://www.in.gov/dnr/invasivespecies/oriental_bittersweet_1.pdf
  17. ^ http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/syah/orierice.htm
  18. ^ http://hawaii.gov/health/about/rules/11-29.pdf
  19. ^ http://bioethics.gov/transcripts/jun03/session2.html
  20. ^ http://www.michigan.gov/documents/cis_ofis_fis_1043_24817_7.pdf
  21. ^ http://www.fws.gov/midwest/horicon/nativeamericans.html
  22. ^ http://www.loc.gov/acq/devpol/sociology.html
  23. ^ http://vitalrecords.alaska.gov/dph/bvs/PDFs/1999/annual_report/Introduction.pdf
  24. ^ A Model Study for Establishing a Small Restaurant in Downtown Honolulu
  25. ^ http://www.nps.gov/archive/manz/hrs/hrs10i.htm
  26. ^ http://www.va.gov/vetapp/files1/9401243.txt
  27. ^ http://www.michigan.gov/documents/GBFT0203_61996_7.pdf
  28. ^ http://www.nifl.gov/nifl-health/1998/0198.html
  29. ^ http://ocp.dc.gov/ocp/lib/ocp/information/solatt/attachment_j.04_eeo_compliance_documents.doc
  30. ^ http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/library/part109.pdf
  31. ^ RCW 1.20.130: "Preferred terminology in government documents." Revised Code of Washington
  32. ^ California State Senate
  33. ^ http://www.acupuncture.ca.gov/education/schools.htm
  34. ^ http://yp.yahoo.com/py/ypMap.py?tuid=12363968
  35. ^ http://www.csomaonline.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3289
  36. ^ http://yp.yahoo.com/py/ypResults.py?stx=oriental+medicine&city=Los+Angeles&state=CA
  37. ^ http://www.acupuncture.ca.gov/law_reg/art35
  38. ^ http://www.acupuncture.ca.gov/exams/stats_mar2006.htm
  39. ^ http://www.acupuncturetoday.com/mpacms/at/article.php?id=27949
  40. ^ http://www.acupuncture.ca.gov/law_reg/1399_45_modtext.pdf
  41. ^ http://www.acupuncture.ca.gov/pubs_forms/cons_guide_2002.pdf
  42. ^ http://www.freewebs.com/bannedwords
  43. ^ http://www.degruyter.de/journals/zac/261_5290_ENU_h.htm
  44. ^ http://oi.uchicago.edu/OI/default.html
  45. ^ http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/dept/linguist/index.html
  46. ^ http://www.ksi.edu/seke/cpol.html
  47. ^ http://www.orientalfood.org/
  48. ^ http://www.orientdance.ru/index_e.htm
  49. ^ http://homepage.realtv21.com/?userid=obda_1&pagetype=&viewno=94
  50. ^ http://www.art-virtue.com/demo/2006-TaoArt/index.htm
  51. ^ http://www.webruler.com/shriners/oriental.htm
  52. ^ http://www.ladiesorientalshrine.org/home.html
  53. ^ http://www.aaom.org/ Website of American Association of Oriental Medicine
  54. ^ http://www.oriental-bikini.com/
  55. ^ http://www.orientals.com/
  56. ^ http://www.orientalcompanion.com
  57. ^ http://www.omacworld.com
  58. ^ http://www.west-meet-east.com/martialarts.htm
  59. ^ http://www.orientalmartialarts.org/
  60. ^ http://www.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel03/release121903.htm
  61. ^ http://www.fbi.gov/publications/leb/2003/feb2003/feb03leb.htm
  62. ^ http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page5495.asp

References and further reading

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