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Murzyn is a Polish word for a black person. It is seen by some as a neutral word, but others consider it to have pejorative connotations.

Etymology

Etymologically, 'murzyn' comes from the same root as the English word 'moor'.

Meaning and connotations

According to Słownik Języka Polskiego (Dictionary of the Polish Language), 'murzyn' means somebody with black skin. Informally, it can also mean: 1. Somebody anonymously doing work for somebody else; 2. Somebody with a dark brown tan; 3. A hard working person forced to do hard labour.

'Murzyn' (diminutive - 'murzynek', feminine form - 'murzynka') can be translated into English as 'black' or 'Negro'. However, in the opinion of Dr Marek Łaziński, it can also be used to describe Shakespeare's 'noble' Othello, usually called a 'moor' in English. According to Patrycja Pirog, the word "'murzyn', which in the opinion of many Poles, including academics, is not offensive, is seen by black people as discriminatory and derogatory."

According to Antonina Kloskowska, writing in "Race", ethnicity and nation: international perspectives on social conflict, the word "Murzyn" "does not carry pejorative connotations. In contrast, the favoured term in the West, "black", which translates into Polish as "Czarny", is seen as offensive".

Poland's first black Member of Parliament, John Godson, has said that he is proud to be a 'murzyn'.

In phrases

Dr Tomasz Piekot, speaking to Gazeta.pl, notes that the image of the 'murzyn' in Poland is

"brutal. We think they are stupid, dirty and stink. From this we get sayings of the following type: "it stinks as if it's from a murzyn hut", "it's as dark as in a murzyn's arse". It's associated with backwardness, poverty, slavery. We can after all describe someone we are using as, "this is my white murzyn". These are all negative connotations."

Wiadomosci24 says:

"Although we rarely see Africans and African-Americans on our streets, of course we say: "The murzyn has done his job, he can go now", or: "we need a murzyn" (for dirty work done for little pay)."

The phrase "a hundred years behind the murzyns" ("sto lat za Murzynami") is used, often about Poland itself, to describe a backward, under-developed situation.

Ghostwriter can be translated informally in Polish as "literacki murzyn" - "a literary murzyn" - someone who works (relatively anonymously) to write a book for somebody else.

Examples in Polish culture

Patrycja Pirog describes the famous children's poem Murzynek Bambo:

"One of the most popular images of the 'murzyn' is that created by Julian Tuwim in his poem Murzynek Bambo. Briefly speaking, this is a story about how enlightened Europe tries to civilise the savage. Bambo goes to an African school, but has a tendency to fool around, and when his mother tries to tell him off for it, he runs away and up a tree. This black child is afraid of having a bath, because his colour might wash off. The school, bath and milk are symbols of civilisation, of washing away that which is impure and incompatible with high culture, until it is white and pure. Bambo instinctively runs away from this. Complying with the rules of the West means the loss of his identity. Bambo is characterised as good, cheerful, black - the Enlightenment myth of the good savage, creating an opposition to that which is white and rational. Unfortunately Bambo cannot go to school with us - white man's school has no place for him, though, the regret that is expressed in the poem regarding this allows the conscience of the reader to be soothed. The poem has greatly contributed to the preservation of the word 'murzyn' in the lexicon. This image created by Tuwim, strongly rooted in Polish culture, still operates in the media and public life, untroubled by the rules of political correctness."

"Under the murzyns" ("Pod Murzynami") is also a not uncommon name for chemist's shops or tenement buildings in Poland. Often an image of a black person accompanies the name.

Food

'Murzynek' is also the name of a Polish chocolate cakes.

References

1. ^ Antonina Kłoskowska (1 July 1996). "Nation, race and ethnicity in Poland". In Peter Ratcliffe (ed.). "Race", ethnicity and nation: international perspectives on social conflict. Psychology Press. p. 187. ISBN 978-1-85728-661-8. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
2. ^ "Murzynek Bambo w Afryce mieszka", czyli jak polska kultura stworzyła swojego "Murzyna", '"Murzyn", który zdaniem wielu Polaków, w tym także naukowców, nie jest obraźliwy, uznawany jest przez osoby czarnoskóre za dyskryminujący i uwłaczający.'
3. SJP.pl
4. Czy Obama jest Murzynem?, Juraszek.net
5. Czy Murzynek Bambo to rasistowski wierszyk?, TVP2
6. O rasizmie w mowie: Dziś Bambo chodzi z nami do szkoły, Gazeta.pl: "Po pierwsze, mówimy zwykle "Murzyn". Obraz takich osób w Polsce jest brutalny. Myślimy o nich, że są głupi, brudni i że śmierdzą. Stąd powiedzonka typu: "śmierdzi jak z murzyńskiej chaty", "ciemno jak w dupie u Murzyna". Kojarzą się z zacofaniem, biedą, niewolnictwem. Możemy przecież powiedzieć o kimś, kogo wykorzystujemy, "to jest mój biały Murzyn". To wszystko negatywne konotacje."
7. , Wiadomosci24: "Choć na naszych ulicach rzadko widzimy Afrykanów i Afroamerykanów, to przecież mawiamy: "Murzyn zrobił swoje, Murzyn może odejść", albo: "potrzebujemy Murzyna" (do czarnej roboty za marne wynagrodzenie)."
8. Najlepszy sposób na Murzyna - list, Wyborcza.pl
9. Jak Colin wyłowił Alicję, TVN24
10. ^ "Murzynek Bambo w Afryce mieszka", czyli jak polska kultura stworzyła swojego "Murzyna", "Jednym z najpopularniejszych wizerunków Murzyna jest ten wykreowany przez Juliana Tuwima w wierszu Murzynek Bambo. Najkrócej rzecz ujmując, jest to historia o tym, jak oświecona Europa próbuje ucywilizować dzikusa. Bambo zatem chodzi do murzyńskiej szkoły, ale ma skłonność do figlowania, gdy mama próbuje go za to karcić, on ucieka na drzewo. Murzynek boi się kąpieli, gdyż może się wybielić. Szkoła, kąpiel i mleko są symbolami cywilizacji, zmycia tego co nieczyste i nieprzystające do wyższej kultury, do jej bieli i czystości. Bambo instynktownie przed tym ucieka. Podporządkowanie się zasadom Zachodu równa się utracie własnej tożsamości. Bambo charakteryzowany jest jako dobry, wesoły, czarny - oświeceniowy mit dobrego dzikusa, tworzy opozycje do białego i rozumnego. Niestety Bambo nie może chodzić z nami do szkoły - w szkole białego człowieka nie ma dla niego miejsca jednak wyrażony w wierszu żal z tego powodu pozwala ukoić sumienie czytelnika. Wiersz ten w dużym stopniu przyczynił się do utrwalenia leksemu "Murzyn". Silnie zakorzeniony w polskiej kulturze wizerunek wykreowany przez Tuwima, do dziś funkcjonuje w mediach i życiu publicznym, w czym nie przeszkadzają mu zasady poprawności politycznej."
11. Ciasto.pl

See also

• Negro

External links

• PWN discussion of the acceptability and future of the word 'murzyn' (in Polish)
• An African is not a Murzyn. How to speak without offending, a discussion of the alternatives to 'murzyn' (in Polish)

• Misplaced Pages neutral point of view disputes from September 2011
• Polish culture
• Polish words and phrases