ching chong

See also: ching-chong and Ching-chong

English

Alternative forms

• ching-chong

Etymology

Onomatopoeic, originally representing characteristic syllables of Chinese, such as Mandarin's qing and chong, Cantonese's cing¹ and cong¹, Hokkien's chheng and chhong, etc., as heard by English-speakers, and reinforced by perceptions of other Asian languages, especially with existing surnames of Chinese origin, such as Ching/Cheng and Chong/Chung.

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtʃɪŋ ˌtʃɒŋ/
• enPR: chǐngʹ chŏng

Interjection

ching chong

1. (offensive, ethnic slur) Mimicking Chinese, Korean, Thai or other East/Southeast Asian speech.
   • 2008, Alice Pung, Growing Up Asian in Australia, page 91:

     He came up with three or four kids behind him, chanting 'Ching chong! Ching chong! Don't even know how to talk! Don't even know how to fight!'

   • 2009, Kent A. Ono, Vincent N. Pham, Asian Americans and the media, page 104:

     For example, comedian and talk-show host Adam Corolla and NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal have each previously made ching chong comments in reference to Asians and Asian Americans.

   • 2016 October 21, Crystal Chen, “I ‘Went Back to China’ — and Felt More American than Ever”, in Foreign Policy‎^[1], archived from the original on 2016-10-22‎^[2]:

     Growing up in Nebraska, I was “ching-chong’d” in school and asked why my eyes were so small. Later on, popular kids would compel me to do their homework with overtures of friendship, only to ignore me at recess.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:ching chong.

Usage notes

The term will often be pronounced or performed with unusual exaggeration, cadence and emphasis to mimic perceptions of East Asian languages; the user may consider the term humorous or a crass joke.

See also

• durka durka (mimicking Middle Eastern speech)
• ooga booga (mimicking African and Australian Aboriginal speech)
• zhing-zhong

Noun

ching chong (plural ching chongs)

1. (offensive, ethnic slur) A Chinese or other Asian person.
   • 1952, John Steinbeck, East of Eden‎^[3], New York: Viking Press, →OCLC, page 205:

     “Hey there, Ching Chong, bring the pistol.” In a moment Lee poked the gun butt-first through the door.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:ching chong.

Further reading

• ching chong, ching-chong at the Google Books Ngram Viewer.