View source for Jook-sing

{{short description|Term for person of Chinese descent who adopts Western cultural norms}}
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{{About||the noodles|Jook-sing noodle}}
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'''''Jook-sing''''' or '''''zuk-sing''''' (竹升) is a [[Cantonese]] term for an [[overseas Chinese]] person who was born in the [[Western world|West]], or a [[Chinese person]] who more readily or strongly identifies with [[Western culture]] than traditional [[Chinese culture]].

== Etymology ==
The term ''jook-sing'' evolved from ''zuk-gong'' (竹槓/竹杠; ''zhúgàng'' in Mandarin) which means a "bamboo pole" or "rod".  Since ''gong'' (杠) is a Cantonese [[homophone]] of the inauspicious word 降 which means "descend" or "downward", it is replaced with ''sing'' (升), which means "ascend" or "upward".

The stem of the [[bamboo]] plant is hollow and compartmentalized; thus water poured in one end does not flow out of the other end. The [[metaphor]] is that ''jook-sings'' are not part of either culture; water within the ''jook-sing'' does not flow and connect to either end. In Cantonese, as 通 can means both "flow-through" and "understanding", while 頭 can means both "head"/"end" and side, the follow-up context phrase is "兩頭都不通" - lit "cannot get through both end" and "do not have understanding on both sides".

The term may or may not be derogatory. Use of the term predates World War II.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://setohj.wordpress.com/2016/04/29/bamboo-pole-or-earth-born/ | title=Bamboo Pole or Earth Born | date=29 April 2016 }}</ref>

==Modern term==

===North American usage===
In the United States and Canada, the term refers to fully [[Western world|Westernized]] American-born or Canadian-born Chinese. The term originates from Cantonese slang in the United States. ''Jook-sing'' persons are categorized as having Western-centric identities, values and culture. The term also refers to similar Chinese individuals in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, and New Zealand.

===Related colloquialisms===
*[[Banana (slur)|Banana]] ({{zh|c=香蕉人/香蕉仔|j=hoeng1 ziu1 jan4/hoeng1 ziu1 zi2|p=xiāngjiāo rén / xiāngjiāo zi}}) (referencing the yellow skin and white insides of the fruit when fully matured) and [[Twinkie]] (based on the snack produced by American company [[Hostess (brand)|Hostess]] - again, it denotes something that is "yellow" on the outside and "white" on the inside); may be used as a pejorative term or as a non-pejorative term.
*FOB (Fresh Off the Boat): [[antonym]] of ''jook-sing.'' Typically meant to indicate a Chinese-born person who propagates excessively Chinese stereotypes while living in the West.

==See also==
{{Portal|China}}
* [[Lost Years: A People's Struggle for Justice]]

* [[Overseas Chinese]]<br>[[Chinese American|American Chinese]]<br>[[British Chinese]]<br>[[Chinese Canadian]]<br>[[Chinese Australian]]<br>[[Chinese New Zealander]]

* [[American-born Chinese]]
* [[Third culture kid]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==

* {{Cite book|last=Louie|first=Emma Woo|title=Chinese American Names; Tradition and Transition|publisher=McFarland and Company|others=Foreword by Him Mark Lai|year=1998|isbn=978-0-7864-0418-6|location=[[Jefferson, North Carolina|Jefferson]]|oclc=37705342}}
*{{Cite book|last=Lee|first=Douglas W.|title=Chinese American History and Historiography: The Musings of a Jook-Sing|year=1980|oclc=80582576}}

==External links==
{{Wiktionary|jook-sing|竹升}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060202055906/http://www.usadeepsouth.com/article1082.html Pilgrimage to China] by Beth Boswell Jacks
* [http://www.lostyears.ca Lost Years]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050305041122/http://www.asianweek.com/011499/coverstory.html Strained Relations] by Julie D. Soo


{{Chinese American|state=collapsed}}
{{ethnic slurs}}
{{Overseas Chinese}}

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[[Category:Cantonese words and phrases]]
[[Category:Chinese diaspora]]
[[Category:Ethnic and religious slurs]]