non-whiteadj.n.
/nɒnˈwʌɪt/, U.S. /nɑnˈ(h)waɪt/ A. adj.
1. gen. Not white in colour.
ΚΠ
1806 T. Taylor tr. Aristotle Physics vi. xiv. 393 It will, therefore, neither be white, nor non-white.
1902 Vogue 31 July 153/2 (heading) Correct taste in non-white shirts.
2001 Advertising Age 29 Jan. 8 30% of all panties sold are black or other non-white colors.
2. Of a person or group: not white (see white adj. 5a); (sometimes) spec. of African, Asian, or mixed ethnic origin or descent. Also: of or relating to non-white people.Use of non-white in this sense has been objected to or avoided, particularly since the late 20th century, on the grounds that it can be construed as implying that the norm is white. However, although alternatives such as person of colour (see of colour at colour n.1 Phrases 11) have begun to be used more widely, they may not be appropriate in all contexts. Non-white continues to be broadly accepted where a collective term is required to show a distinction, as in statistical or demographic categories.
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > ethnicities > division of mankind by physical characteristics > non-white person > [adjective]
blackOE
coloured1758
native1827
non-white1867
non-European1870
Indo-African1896
woggy1941
wog1948
New Commonwealth1964
1867 H. R. Helper Nojoque Pref. p. vii The non-white drones and sluggards and vagabonds.
1910 Jrnl. Royal Statist. Soc. 73 455 The writer of this pamphlet examines the census figures of the different States of South Africa, which are admittedly not complete as regards the non-white population.
1959 V. Packard Status Seekers (1960) vi. 86 If white residents of an area are in no hurry to leave, but non-whites are eager to come in, the pressure of non-white demand may bid up the price of houses.
1986 L. Nkosi Mating Birds i. 3 The tourists leave behind them..a young body lying spent and motionless on the warm white sands to be gazed at by us, the silent forbidden crowds of non-white boys.
1995 E. Kallen Ethnicity & Human Rights Canada (ed. 2) i. 38 Discrimination on the basis of non-white skin colour.
2013 N.Y. Times Mag. 28 July 32/2 Nonwhite voters made up as much as 58 percent of the Democratic primary.
B. n.
A non-white person. With plural agreement (with the): non-white people collectively.See note on usage at sense A. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > ethnicities > division of mankind by physical characteristics > non-white person > [noun]
person of colour1786
buck1800
coloured1832
Indiano1836
nigger1843
skepsel1844
native1846
non-white1864
fuzzy1890
fuzzy-wuzzy1892
monk1903
non-European1906
golliwog1916
wog1921
non-European1925
gook1935
boong1941
jungle bunny1966
Indio1969
1864 F. C. Bowen Logic (ed. 2) 291 The Exclusive proposition, ‘None but Whites are civilized’, is really complex; it contains one direct assertion, respecting all non-Whites, that they are not civilized.
1918 Internat. Jrnl. Ethics 28 522 The grand domination of the non-whites by the whites during the last few generations.
1934 A. J. Barnouw Lang. & Race Probl. 29 In the other Provinces all non-whites are counted among the natives.
1952 B. Davidson Rep. S. Afr. i. i. 27 No serious South African will argue any longer..that apartheid, the complete and geographical segregation of the white from the non-white at all levels, can work.
1995 Guardian 2 Mar. i. 12/3 California's affirmative action programme, in which non-whites and women are given favourable treatment in applications to universities.
2011 T. Cole Open City (2012) viii. 99 Several hate crimes had ratcheted up the tension experienced by nonwhites living in the country.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.1806