Nigger

Nigger is a racist insult against black people. It is also known as the "hard R", because the word ends in 'er' instead of 'a', as in the word "nigga". The word "nigga" is used in pop culture slang by black people. However, it is commonly used by those who believe that white people are better than black people.[1]

Not to be confused with Niger or nigga.

The word came from a slang way to say "negro". That is the word for the color black and for black people in Spanish and Portuguese.[2] Before 1865, most black people in the United States were slaves. During that time, the word "nigger" commonly meant a slave. Writers such as Joseph Conrad,[3] Mark Twain,[4] and Charles Dickens[5] used it in their stories and other writing.

Today, the word is a hurtful racial slur in English. It is called hate speech. "Nigger" is today so offensive to say and hear that most people do not use the word. They call it "the N-word".

References
  1. Starkey, Brando Simeo (18 May 2017). "If you truly knew what the N-word meant to our ancestors, you'd NEVER use it". The Undefeated.
  2. Pilgrim, David (September 2001). "Nigger and Caricatures". Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  3. "The Nigger of the "Narcissus" by Joseph Conrad". www.gutenberg.org. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
  4. Twain, Mark (2004). Life on the Mississippi. Kessinger Publishing. p. 11, 13, 127, 139, 219. ISBN 978-1-4191-3041-0.
  5. "Esther M. Zimmer Lederberg: Dickens and Racism". www.estherlederberg.com. Retrieved 2023-01-21.


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