Native
The term "native" can have many different social and political connotations in different contexts. In some cases it is a neutral, descriptive term, for example, when stating that one is a native of a particular city or that a certain language is one's native language. However, in the context of colonialism—in particular, British colonialism—the term "natives", as applied to the inhabitants of colonies, assumed a disparaging and patronising sense, implying that the people concerned were incapable of taking care of themselves and in need of Europeans to administer their lives; therefore, these people resent the use of the term and consider it insulting, and at present English speakers usually avoid using it. This connotation has also led to controversy over the preference of the terms Native American or American Indians, though this controversy has resulted in either term being acceptable to most American Indians. And in the context of Nativism, in some periods a potent political force, "natives" are defined as a (predominantly white) group deserving of a special privileged position in comparison to immigrants.
"Native" may also refer to:
- Native metal
- Native (comics), a character in the X-Men comics universe
Read more about Native: Nationality and Language, Music, Ecology, Computing, Other
Famous quotes containing the word native:
“When I think of my own native land,
In a moment I seem to be there;
But alas! recollection at hand
Soon hurries me back to despair.”
—William Cowper (1731–1800)
“...I have ... been guilty of watching Westerns without acknowledging that Native Americans have gone through the same madness as African Americans. Isn’t it extraordinary that sometimes the most offended have not seen others being offended?”
—Judith Jamison (b. 1943)
“If Los Angeles has been called “the capital of crackpots” and “the metropolis of isms,” the native Angeleno can not fairly attribute all of the city’s idiosyncrasies to the newcomer—at least not so long as he consults the crystal ball for guidance in his business dealings and his wife goes shopping downtown in beach pajamas.”
—For the State of California, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)