黒人
kokujin[ko̞kɯ̟ʑĩɴ]
The phrase for "black person" in Japanese is 黒人 (kokujin).
黒人 is the most commonly used and neutral term in Japanese for "black person." If you wish to specifically denote someone of African descent, you can use アフリカ系の人.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 黒人 is composed of the kanji 黒 (black) and 人 (person).
How do you pronounce it?
kokujin
Did you know?
- Japanese lacks a single word for 'race' in the biological or social sense used in English, often using 人種 (jinshu), which literally means 'human species'.
- In Japanese pop culture, the term 黒い (kuroi) meaning 'black' can also describe a person's character as 'shady' or 'suspicious' rather than their skin tone.
- While 黒人 is neutral, Japanese speakers often use the loanword ブラック (burakku) in specific contexts like 'Black Music' (ブラックミュージック) to describe genres regardless of the artist's actual skin color.
Examples in context
- 私の友達は黒人です。My friend is black.
- パーティーにアフリカ系の人がいました。There were people of African descent at the party.
- 彼は黒人です。Kare wa kokujin desu.He is a black person.
- あの黒人の選手は速いです。Ano kokujin no senshu wa hayai desu.That black athlete is fast.
- 黒人のモデルが雑誌に載っています。Kokujin no moderu ga zasshi ni notte imasu.A black model is in the magazine.
Example conversation
Misaki and Kenta are talking about a movie.
- 美咲 Misakiこの映画の主役は黒人ですね。Kono eiga no shuyaku wa kokujin desu ne.The protagonist of this movie is a black person, isn't he?
- 健太 Kentaはい、とても演技が上手です。Hai, totemo engi ga jouzu desu.Yes, his acting is very good.
- 美咲 Misaki物語がとても感動的でした。Monogatari ga totemo kandouteki deshita.The story was very moving.
- 健太 Kenta僕もそう思います。Boku mo sou omoimasu.I think so too.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 黒人, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
