The story
- Arabic · derived fromعرص“a shepherd”
- English todayars
For the sense of "Mizrahi person", Arabic عرص (“a shepherd”), which became an Arabic slang word referring to pimps who "shepherd" prostitutes. This term was influenced by stereotypes of Mizrahi Jews as crude and aggressive, later used by an Israeli subculture. Not related to the vulgar word arse.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.