Paki

See also: paki, p'aki, and ракӏ

English

Etymology

Either a clipping of Pakistani or a back-formation from Pakistan. Doublet of Pak.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpæki/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -æki

Noun

Paki (plural Pakis) (offensive, ethnic slur)

1. (UK, Canada, India) A Pakistani.
2. (UK, Canada, by extension) Anyone whose origins are perceived to be from South Asia/the Indian subcontinent.
   • 1970 March 29, Nik Cohn, “England's New Teen Style Is Violence”, in The New York Times‎^[2], →ISSN:

     Their byword is Aggro (Aggravation) and their crucial enemies are hippies, homosexuals and Pakis (Pakistanis or Indians).

   • Paragraph 2, DPP v Collins ([2006] 1 WLR 2223)

     In these telephone calls and recorded messages the respondent, who held strong views on immigration and asylum policy and the provision of public support to immigrants and applicants for asylum, ranted and shouted and made reference to "Wogs", "Pakis", "Black bastards" and […] "Niggers".

3. (UK, Ireland) Ellipsis of Paki shop.

Usage notes

Paki acquired offensive connotations in the 1960s when used by British tabloids to refer to subjects of former colony states in a derogatory and racist manner. In modern British usage "Paki" is typically a derogatory label referring to South Asians beyond Pakistan, including those from India, Afghanistan and elsewhere. To a lesser extent, it has also been applied to Arabs and others perceived to resemble South Asians.

In recent times there has been a trend by second and third-generation British Pakistanis to reclaim the word, so that it can be used between young British Pakistanis, but not by outsiders, even Indians and Bangladeshis.

In other English-speaking countries such as the US, Paki is sometimes encountered as a term meant without offence (perhaps due to the mistaken belief that Pakistan derives its name from an ethnic group like other -stan countries) – see for example US President George W. Bush's statement that he was "working hard to convince both the Indians and the Pakis". However, this risks causing considerable offence and should be avoided.

Translations

a Pakistani

• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 巴基躝癱／巴基𨅬瘫 (baa¹ gei¹ laan¹ taan²) (ethnic slur)

• French: pakos (fr) m or f (ethnic slur), paki (fr) (ethnic slur), pakpak (fr) m or f (ethnic slur)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: pakkis (no) m

  Nynorsk: pakkis m

• Russian: (rare) пак (ru) m (pak), (rare, from English) па́ки (ru) m or f (páki)

Adjective

Paki (not comparable)

1. (British, Canada, derogatory, ethnic slur) Pakistani, or perceived to be Pakistani.

Derived terms

• Paki shop

Translations

Pakistani

• Russian: (rare) па́ковский (pákovskij)

Anagrams

• Paik, kipa, pika

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English Paki.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pa.ki/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

Paki m (plural Pakis)

1. (ethnic slur) Paki (offensive term for a Pakistani)