黒人男性
kokujin dansei
The English phrase "black guy" is translated into Japanese as 黒人男性 (kokujin dansei).
The phrase is used to refer to a man with black skin or of African descent.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 黒人 (kokujin) is composed of koku (black) and jin (person/nationality).
Which one should you use?
While 黒人 is a standard noun that can be used alone to mean "black person," 黒人男性 is a more descriptive and formal way to specifically identify the person's gender.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Using 黒人 is a common, neutral way to refer to a person of African descent. The full phrase 黒人男性 provides a more formal specification of gender.
How do you pronounce it?
kokujin dansei
Did you know?
- While 黒人 is neutral, the term 黒い人 (black person) can sound like a description of skin tone or a stain rather than an ethnicity. To avoid sounding unnatural, Japanese speakers use the specific noun 黒人 for people of African descent.
- The character 人 in 黒人 is read as jin when referring to nationality or race, but it is read as hito when referring to an individual person. Switching these readings can change the phrase from a category to a specific individual.
- In Japanese media, the term 黒人 is often avoided in favor of アフリカ系 (African descent) to adhere to modern broadcasting standards of politeness.
Examples in context
- あの黒人さんは親切ですね。That black guy is kind, isn't he?
- 彼はとてもハンサムな黒人男性です。Kare wa totemo hansamu na kokujin dansei desu.He is a very handsome black man.
- あの黒人男性はバスを待っています。Ano kokujin dansei wa basu o matte imasu.That black man is waiting for the bus.
- 黒人男性のモデルが広告に登場した。Kokujin dansei no moderu ga koukoku ni toujou shita.A black male model appeared in the advertisement.
Example conversation
Kenta and Yui are watching a movie at home.
- 健太 Kentaあの黒人男性の俳優、かっこいいよね。Ano kokujin dansei no haiyu, kakkoii yo ne.That black actor is cool, isn't he?
- 結衣 Yuiうん、すごく演技が上手いと思う。Un, sugoku engi ga umai to omou.Yeah, I think his acting is really good.
- 健太 Kenta次のシーンでも彼が出てくるよ。Tsugi no shiin demo kare ga detekuru yo.He appears in the next scene, too.
- 結衣 Yui楽しみだね。Tanoshimi da ne.I'm looking forward to it.
