When I was in India last, I acquired a new pet peeve, one that irritates me far more than it should:
In the USA, sure, we’re different, we’re quaint, we’re ethnic. Salwar Kameez/Kurtas/Saris/Lehngas/Sherwanis are our traditional ethnic (read funny-looking)dress. 
We’ve all had this conversation with a non-desi at a desi wedding:
“Why is the bride wearing red?”
“Well, some brides wear white, but for others, wearing red or pink is our ethnic tradition.”
“Oooooh, that’s so exotic”
Ethnic means we’re different from them.
But in India, why are Indian clothes called ethnic? Ethnic connotes the other, the habits of the minority, things that are unfamiliar to mainstream society. None of this applies in India for Indian clothing. There is no them to be different from.
Why not call it “Western” vs. “Indian” clothing? Or (although this is not accurate) “Western” vs. “Traditional Clothing”? Or, if you think the term ethnic refers to the fact that various types of clothing have regional roots, why not say “Gujarati Lehngas” and “Punjabi Salwar Kameez” etc? Better yet, why not just say Sherwanis rather than “ethnic Sherwanis”? I just don’t get it.
Then again, if you consider the breadth of my ignorance about fashion, the fact that I don’t understand this one little thing is really the least of my troubles 
Update:
The word ethnic originally meant “gentile” or “goyim”. This sense that it refers to foreign people rather than all people has been with the word ever since it was in the original greek:
WORD HISTORY When it is said in a Middle English text written before 1400 that a part of a temple fell down and “mad a gret distruccione of ethnykis,” one wonders why ethnics were singled out for death. The word ethnic in this context, however, means “gentile,” coming as it does from the Greek adjective ethnikos, meaning “national, foreign, gentile.” The adjective is derived from the noun ethnos, “people, nation, foreign people,” that in the plural phrase ta ethne- meant “foreign nations.” In translating the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek, this phrase was used for Hebrew go-yi-m, “gentiles”; hence the sense of the noun in the Middle English quotation. The noun ethnic in this sense or the related sense “heathen” is not recorded after 1728, although the related adjective sense is still used. But probably under the influence of other words going back to Greek ethnos, such as ethnography and ethnology, the adjective ethnic broadened in meaning in the 19th century. After this broadening the noun sense “a member of a particular ethnic group,” first recorded in 1945, came into existence. [Link]
ennis, you’re right it’s weird.
Ennis, which store is this from?
I saw signs like this at a branch of a chain small department store in Bombay…
This was from a store in Karol Bagh, Delhi. It was next door to Frontier Bazar where we spent a lot of time shopping.
I suggest we throw bricks through their window. This kind of stuff really annoys me. I bet you they have white mannequins also.
The naming practice seemed pretty consistent across Delhi. This was the one place where I took a picture, the signage made it particularly glaring.
it’s truly annoying. as bad as calling your own clothing costumes or referring to the traditional (or anything non-western) clothing of people who still wear their own traditional or customary clothing day in, day out as costumes. western clothing is ethnic in itself and as much a costume.
Dont you get it? Its the clothing for the “Hindi Medium Types” So “we” (or “you”) are different from them. 🙂
But if you’re selling it, you don’t want your buyers to feel like “Hindi Medium Types” especially when they’re purchasing bridal gear.
wow….I thought we’d be normal in India. I guess we are just wierd everywhere…
Ethnic connotes the other
Maybe it doesn’t in India? Maybe people don’t understand ethnic and conflate it with traditional?
It’s so true. We should really write to…somebody important. Amitabachan isn’t doing much these days, right?
Main Entry: ethnic Part of Speech: adjective Definition: cultural Synonyms: indigenous, national, native, racial, traditional, tribal
I don’t see what the problem is??
Do white people ever use the world ethnic to describe their own “national, racial, traditional, tribal” customs? Try using it over July 4th weekend – “Oh, so this is your ethnic potato salad! Mmmmmm and some ethnic hot dogs! I love your ethnic tank top!” and see how people react.
BTW, do you have a source on that definition?
It’s as annoying as how they refer to Indian languages as ‘the vernaculars’. Technically it’s not an incorrect term (just as ethnic may technically not be incorrect) but it’s demeaning and marginalising just the same. As if English is somehow far superior to ‘the vernaculars’.
I do not see a problem in using the word ethnic at all in these stores. I havent read through the sign in its entirety, but given a modern, open economy where you are supposed to find traditional and modern clothing, it is correct to use ‘ethnic clothing’ when referring to traditional indian clothing.
you would want some way to distinguish between McBurgers and desi daal roti after all. 😉
Go on, get the flames working!
That definition of ethnic seems to be from the standpoint of an outside observer. Meaning ethnic is how an outsider would describe the ‘indigenous, national, native, racial, traditional, tribal’ aspects of an other culture.
Main Entry: ethnic Part of Speech: adjective Definition: cultural Synonyms: indigenous, national, native, racial, traditional, tribal Source: Roget’s New Millennium™ Thesaurus, First Edition (v 1.2.1) Copyright © 2006 by Lexico Publishing Group, LLC. All rights reserved
Got it from http://www.thesaurus.com.
Sometimes words are used in their original definition rather than the colloquial meaning. And moreover the negative meaning you are referring to is not prevelant in India or atleast not percieved in that way.
Also, from a businessman point of few, they don’t want to use the term “traditional clothing” because it has the connotation that it is not modern.
why is everything viewed in term of white…..why can’t it be accepted that indian english is another form of english too. they accepted it and they use it without thinking what white people would say!
Why call them ethnic at all? Does it add anything? Do people not know what a kurta or a sherwani or a lehnga is? Why waste space on a signboard with extra verbiage? Why not just call the clothes by their names?
Don’t you mean the Western McBurgers and the ethnic daal roti? Imagine if restaurants all over India started using the adjective “western” or “ethnic” on their menus. Would you like some ethnic dosa or some ethnic idli? How about some ethnic pickle? Or maybe a western Burger? See how silly that sounds? It makes you wonder why they’re doing it with clothing.
It is omnipresent. Since there is a free preview for indian news channels, i happen to watch this infomercial selling fairness cream. It is so blatant in saying that fair skin is better
I guess “traditional clothes” would be more appropriate if its in India.
ps I miss Delhi
I would blame this to the incomplete comprehension of the work “ethnic”. Maybe the word “ethnic” is fancy, charming and upwardly.
Well, English is a foreign language after all. I think it’s mostly that people don’t know the nuances of the words they use. I wouldn’t hold that against them.
What got to me on my last trip to India though was the big Thanksgiving promotions going on all over Delhi. By way of explanation I was told that well there are a lot of NRIs here so that’s why they probably celebrate it. Made me cringe even more.
Even if this is a hinglishism, what does it add? I think the comparison with food is very apt. Nobody goes around calling their food ethnic (although they do call it western) why are they calling clothing ethnic?
I agree with MG, the term is used in India in its literal sense unlike the Western usage of the term. Ethnic in India is used interchangeably with traditional. There is a whole category of clothing labeled ethnic in India, is it in conformity with the western usage of the term may be not but it certainly doesnÂ’t imply any negative connotations. Going by your example of food, western food is not as prevalent as western clothing in India hence non-usage of the term ethnic while describing food.
Some other definitions:
When you said in your post, why not call them Traditional instead of Ethnic, isnt that wastage of space. 🙂
To call a Sherwani a Sherwani doesnt let the buyer know whether it is a traditional/ethnic or a fusion/modern sherwani.
Sometimes you really need to sip chai to know its not tea 😉
Sorry, it’s hard to read above. If you click on it, you’ll get a larger, higher resolution version.
why traditional vs. modern clothing? this gives a sort of progressive heft to basically what we call western (read “modern”) clothing. can’t traditional (or “ethnic”) be modern as well? a lot of indian designer clothes are “ethnic” or ‘ethnic” inspirerd and yet modern as well. some very “modern” people wear them. likewise, some very regressive people wear “modern” clothing. i agree that the word ethnic is probably used for the most part without thinking and without any conscious negative connotations in india (although there are some for whom it does have negative connotations), but having lived in several colonized countries, its interesting to see the impact of clothing on people’s thinking and how closely they identify it with certain stereotypes. in that respect, india is actually far luckier and far more confident about itself and independent than some of the other countries.
Or
I think the only people who would read into this are uptight ABDs and Hindutvadis. Strange bedfellows indeed
I think the only people that would off-handedly dismiss this are the ones without anything intelligent to contribute who still want to see their first name on the internet.
Why? I’ve never seen it in any other English speaking country in the world.
Ennis, I agree with you on this. Indians shouldn’t be marginalizing their own traditions in this way. It’s sad. And you’re right: Americans don’t call their own clothing/food “ethnic”.
We need to be more confident in who we are.
Also, why are NRIs celebrating Thanksgiving in Delhi? WTF? Thanksgiving is an American “Christian” holiday which pretty much celebrates the Pilgrims’ victory over the Native Americans. What do NRIs have to do with that? I live in the States and I certainly do NOT celebrate that atrocious holiday…anymore than I would celebrate the British Raj.
That isn’t true. Thanksgiving doesn’t celebrate any victory. The iconic Thanksgiving scence is Pilgrims and NAtive Americans sitting down at a table together and sharing a meal in peace. The killing came later.
Calling Indian stuff “ethnic”, celebrating Thanksgiving/Valentine’s day/Mother’s day etc in India are all manifestations of the same problem. I’m no proponent of banning/protesting against such stuff, but Bollywood/Indian TV shows can address the issue in proper terms via infotainment.
M. Nam
Ennis, I don’t get the food analogy here. The words idli/dal roti and burger already inform us that they’re “ethnic” and “western” respectively. But, with respect to clothes, there would be no such redundancy. I gather from comments on this site that the word ethnic carries with it a negative connotation here in the US, but in India there are no such implications. Maybe saying ethnic sounds less awkward for us than saying Indian all the time? Just a hypothesis.
I’m confused. If it’s clear that you mean (Indian) idli, why isn’t it clear that you mean (Indian) Sherwani? If it’s clear that you mean (Indian) dosa then why isn’t it clear that you mean (Indian) “Kurta pyjama”?
I hear people about fusion, that there are modern and traditional forms of sherwani, but that’s not ethnic and non-ethnic at all. Both of them are desi, one is traditional and the other one isn’t. Ethnic doesn’t tell me anything here.
Perhaps you and other people are right that ethnic doesn’t mean foreign in India, but that itself is worth remarking on because the connotation of foreigness goes back to its first usage in English (and back further to the Greek root of the word), and remains constant in all the English speaking countries I know. Canadians don’t call their dress ethnic, neither do Australians, New Zealanders, etc. Nor have I encountered this in other former British colonies. In Africa they call their own dress “National Dress” to emphasize it’s rootedness. The word shows up in dress codes all the time.
Ennis,
When you say Africa do you mean a specific country or the whole continent? Also is your example specific to this one shop you visited in Karol Bagh or every shop selling Indian clothes that you came across?
I can understand if this trend of labelling clothes started in India as a means to reach the tourist communities who are looking for ‘ethnic indian wear’. The word ‘ethnic’ in the label just draws the customer in. I saw similar labels about three years ago in Connaught Place in Delhi which is a huge market for tourists. Karol Bagh is also one of the major shopping districts in Delhi, so I can understand if shop vendors want to market their products… if using ‘ethnic’ in the label adds to the effect then that’s all they care for. I didn’t know tough if this has caught on to local markets/ stores as well.
The notion of Indians in India following north american traditions and calling their own traditional clothing ethnic is a different issue. What is the root of this? It comes down to taking pride in who you are and what you represent.
It seems like kids in india want nothing more than to imitate the west and its ways… (n.b. this is far more common in the major indian cities vs all over india). Perhaps it’s the excitement of something new/ different? Or the glamour of hollywood they see in movies? What about wanting to get out of india and finding a job in the west? Many indians aspire to study hard and go to top colleges to get a job abroad because they think that life ‘there’ is more comfortable and prosperous. Maybe what drives their inner desire to keep up to par with western standards is their hope to be part of that society someday? In the meantime not valuing what their own culture or traditions perhaps… but they are coming from a very different perspective than indians born and brought up in the west.
Just some more food for thought…
speaking of africa, this was an interesting story a couple of years ago: Kenya MPs fight ‘colonial’ dress code:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3070131.stm and the diverse feedback comments on same page.
I had seen this regularly in Delhi. I spent a lot of time shopping at non-touristy desi boutiques / stores since my sister was shopping for her wedding. Since she was shopping, I was bored, and I had lots of time to observe my surroundings closely. That said, if my impressions are unrepresentative, I’m happy to be corrected.
As for Africa, you’re right, it’s a huge continent. But this discussion about which clothes are proper to wear in which contexts is one that I can think of in several countries in different regions. It’s a common post-colonial issue.
Calling them “Indian” clothes makes the most sense to me- these clothes are worn by many people in India on a daily basis. I have to say that I never heard the term “ethnic” to describe Indian clothing when I was a child in India. I also feel a little odd when the term “ethnic” is used to describe people, but maybe this is in common usage here?
One thing I admire about this space is the humility of the authors. Contrary to what some ignorant commenter may say this is one of the premier places for thought provoking Diaspora discussion. I am not trying to be a smartass when I ask you those questions; I am just trying to get a better understanding myself. There may be subconscious biases that come across in signage like this.
Oops, my bad. I was referring to a usage I’m familiar with in India where we say “I bought an ethnic bag/skirt/folder”. I didn’t notice the fine print on the image! I haven’t really heard anyone saying ethnic sherwani though.
Long-time lurker here, commenting for the first time. From my experience growing up in India, “Ethnic” in the context of Indian clothing means: – clothing with heavy embroidery, mirror-work, bead-work etc. Generally stuff that is meant to be worn for special occasions, not everyday wear. – Folksy clothing, or hand-made cloth/clothing. – non-fusion wear: i.e. traditional ghagra-cholis etc.
I’ve seen this distinction in Bangalore, Bombay and Delhi, so it seems to be a well-understood usage of the word.
Vanya, re: Ethnic sherwani – we saw something similar in Bombay – I think it was Ethnic kurta there – and it meant a standard-issue embroidered kurta, as opposed to one that is short/transparent/has-a-wierd-neckline.
That said, the distinction isn’t very clear-cut at all: a broomstick skirt in a flowery, printed cotton is not usually called ethnic while the same skirt in a bandhni material is.
Ennis and All,
Calling clothes “ethnic” isnt shocking enough. Here’s a University (my undergrad) that has a department called Oriental Institute Its basically a Department that studies Sanskrit old texts. But oriental ?? WTF?? That shows whose point of view all these things are. For a westerner, study of Sanskrit literature would be studying “oriental” manuscript studies, but in India they call themselves “orientals”??? Jai Ho Shri McCaulay ki !!!
RC, was that in India?
Yes, My undergrad University. MS University of Vadodara in Gujarat.
Power puts the onus on the other to make distinctions, to salvage identity.
I, also, am a ‘long time lurker here, commenting for the first time.’
I believe (and this is indeed my humble opinion) that commenting on the use of the term ‘ethnic’ in India is akin to Indian’s (and I mean the original ‘desis’ who live in ‘des’) getting upset about the term ‘desi’ if applied to them. Colonial hangover? Most probably. But try calling someone in India a ‘desi’ and believe me, you will have a very upset national on your hands ..er .. in your face, never mind the literal meaning.
Back to the point, One will rarely see the term ‘ethnic’ in a store selling only Indian clothes. I do believe it’s an economical way of differentiating between western and Indian garb. But hey, don’t mind me. When I took my little mongrel pup to the Vet in Gulmohar Park, he put down his (my dog’s) breed as ‘ethnic’. I loved it.