Nigga

Nigga (/ˈnɪɡə/) is a colloquial and vulgar term used in African-American Vernacular English that began as a dialect form of the word nigger, an ethnic slur against black people. In dialects of English (including standard British English) that have non-rhotic speech, "nigger" and "nigga" are often[lower-alpha 1] pronounced the same.

This article is about the colloquial slang. For the racial slur, from which "nigga" derives, see Nigger. For the singer also known as "Nigga", see Flex (singer).
"Nigga, please" redirects here. For the album by Ol' Dirty Bastard, see Nigga Please.

Usage

In practice, its use and meaning are heavily dependent on context.[1] Presently, the word "nigga" is used more liberally among younger members of all races and ethnicities in the United States.[2] In addition to African Americans, other ethnic groups have adopted the term as part of their vernacular, although this usage is controversial.[3][4]

There is conflicting popular opinion on whether there is any meaningful difference between "nigga" and "nigger" as a spoken term.[5] Many people consider the terms to be equally pejorative, and the use of "nigga" both in and outside black communities remains controversial.[6] H. Lewis Smith, author of Bury That Sucka: A Scandalous Love Affair with the N-word, believes that "replacing the 'er' with an 'a' changes nothing other than the pronunciation"[7] and the African American Registry notes, "Brother (Brotha) and Sister (Sistah or Sista) are terms of endearment. Nigger was and still is a word of disrespect."[8] The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, a civil rights group, condemns use of both "nigga" and "nigger".[5]

The use of "nigger" non-pejoratively within the black community was documented in the 1912 book The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man by James Weldon Johnson, in which he recounted a scene in New York City around the turn of the century: "I noticed that among this class of colored men the word 'nigger' was freely used in about the same sense as the word 'fellow,' and sometimes as a term of almost endearment; but I soon learned that its use was positively and absolutely prohibited to white men."[9]

Some African-Americans only consider "nigga" offensive when used by people of other races,[5] seeing its use outside a defined social group as an unwelcome cultural appropriation. Used by blacks, the term may indicate "solidarity or affection",[10] similar to the usage of the words "dude", "homeboy", and "bro". Others consider "nigga" non-offensive except when directed from a non-African-American towards an African-American. Yet others have derided this as hypocritical and harmful, enabling white racists to use the word and confusing the issue over nigger.[3] Conversely, nigga has been used an example of cultural assimilation, whereby members of other ethnicities (particularly younger people) will use the word in a positive way, similar to the previously mentioned "bro" or "dude".[11]

Cultural influence

The term "nigga, please", used in the 1970s by comics such as Paul Mooney as "a funny punctuation in jokes about Blacks",[12] is now heard routinely in comedy routines by African Americans. The growing use of the term is often attributed to its ubiquity in modern American hip hop music.[13][14]

One of the earliest uses of the term in a popular song was the 1983 song "New York New York" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, although it had featured in some very early hip hop recordings such as "Scoopy Rap" and "Family Rap", both from 1979. Ol' Dirty Bastard uses the term 76 times in his Nigga Please album (not including repetitions in choruses).[14]

Comedian Chris Rock's routine "Niggas vs. Black People" distinguishes a "nigga", which he defined as a "low-expectation-having motherfucker", from a "black person". In contrast, Tupac Shakur distinguished between "nigger" and "nigga": "Niggers was the ones on the rope, hanging off the thing; niggas is the ones with gold ropes, hanging out at clubs."[15] Tupac, who has been credited with legitimizing the term, said his song "N.I.G.G.A." stood for "Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished".[16]

Some TV shows use the word, either to create a realistic atmosphere or as a way of presenting social discussion, specifically ones relating to the wealth gap between the rich and the poor.[17][18][19] The word is also used for comedic effect. The word is used commonly in The Boondocks, an adult animated series with satirical takes on traditional American sitcoms and African-American culture.

Use in trademarks or brand names

Until a 2017 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in Matal v. Tam,[20] the Lanham Act did not permit registration of trademarks containing terms that may disparage persons or bring them into disrepute.[21] Registration by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) of terms that are historically considered disparaging to groups of people has been allowed in some circumstances. Self-disparaging trademarks have been allowed in some cases where the applicant has shown that the mark as-used is not considered by the relevant group to be disparaging.[22]

In 1995, two Houston, Texas men filed a trademark application with the PTO for the words "Naturally Intelligent God Gifted Africans", and its acronym. The application was rejected, as were numerous subsequent applications for variations of the word "nigga". Most recently, comedian Damon Wayans twice attempted to trademark a brand name called Nigga, "featuring clothing, books, music and general merchandise".[13] The PTO refused the application, stating "the very fact that debate is ongoing regarding in-[ethnic]-group usage, shows that a substantial composite of African Americans find the term 'nigga' to be offensive".[14]

See also

Notes
  1. Pronunciation between nigger and nigga may be different – for some non-rhotic speakers – when linking r appears.

References
  1. Kennedy, Randall (2002). "Chapter One: The Protean N-Word". Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word. New York: Pantheon Books. pp. 3–13. ISBN 0-375-42172-6.
  2. Cooke, Jeremy (1 March 2007). "Racial slur banned in New York". BBC News. Retrieved 2019-05-01.
  3. Aldridge, Kevin; Thompson, Richelle; Winston, Earnest (5 August 2001). "The evolving N-word". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Archived from the original on 10 January 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2006.
  4. Pierre, Kendra (1 May 2006). "'Nigger,' 'Nigga' or Neither?". Meridia. Lehman College. Archived from the original on March 9, 2009.
  5. Allen-Taylor, J. Douglas (9–15 April 1998). "New Word Order". Metro Silicon Valley. Retrieved 2019-05-01.
  6. Alonso, Alex (30 May 2003). "Won't You Please Be My Nigga: Double Standards with a Taboo Word". Streetgangs Magazine. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2006.
  7. Smith, H. Lewis (25 January 2007). "Why the N-word Is Not Just Another Word". The Black Commentator (214). Retrieved 2019-05-01.
  8. Middleton, Phil; Pilgrim, David (2001). "Nigger (the word), a brief history". aaregistry.org. African American Registry. Retrieved 2019-05-01.
  9. Johnson, James Weldon (1912). The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. pp. 88–89.
  10. Aldridge, Kevin (5 August 2001). "Slurs often adopted by those they insult". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Archived from the original on 11 January 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2006.
  11. Wiggins, Keya (March 2012). "African Americans' perceptions of the "N-Word" in the context of Racial Identity attitudes". Journal of Pan African Studies. 5 (1).
  12. Fears, Darryl (27 November 2006). "Jesse Jackson, Paul Mooney Call for End of N-Word". BET.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2007. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  13. Fears, Darryl (15 March 2006). "Patent offense: Wayans's hip-hop line". The Washington Post. The Washington Post Company. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  14. Cadenhead, Rogers (23 February 2006). "Actor Tries to Trademark 'N' Word". Wired. CondéNet Inc. Archived from the original on 12 February 2007. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  15. Shakur, Tupac (27 October 1995). "2Pac interview with Tabitha Soren" (Interview). Interviewed by Tabitha Soren. MTV – via 2PacAveli.de.
  16. Hunter, Desiree (24 February 2007). "Racial slur takes center stage at Stillman". The Tuscaloosa News. Tuscaloosa, AL. Archived from the original on 9 February 2016. Retrieved 10 December 2018. Rapper Tupac Shakur was credited with legitimizing the term "nigga" when he came out with the song 'N.I.G.G.A.', which he said stood for 'Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished'.
  17. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Am_I_Black_Enough_for_You/5bftl_Oau6MC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Am+I+black+enough&printsec=frontcover
  18. Young, Vershawn Ashanti (March 2007). Your Average Nigga: Performing Race, Literacy, and Masculinity. ISBN 978-0814335765.
  19. Oliver, Melvin L.; Shapiro, Thomas M.; Shapiro, Thomas (2006). Black Wealth, White Wealth: A New Perspective on Racial Inequality. ISBN 9780415951678.
  20. Mullin, Joe (19 June 2017). "Supreme Court rules: Offensive trademarks must be allowed". Ars Technica. Condé Nast. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
  21. 15 U.S.C. § 1052.
  22. Anten, Todd (1 March 2006). "Self-Disparaging Trademarks and Social Change: Factoring the Reappropriation of Slurs into Section 2(A) of the Lanham Act" (PDF). Columbia Law Review. 106: 338. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 July 2011.
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