Meanings
nounnikkeijin (plural nikkeijins or nikkeijin)
plural nikkeijins
- A nikkei; a Japanese immigrant or descendant not resident in Japan.
The peculiar position of his group, according to Mr. Okimoto, is shown by the Japanese habit of referring to such persons as either nisei or nikkeijin —of Japanese descent—instead of calling them gaijin, that is, foreigners, or identifying them by nationality.
1973 October 4, Robert Trumbull, “Offspring of Japanese Settlers in U.S. Find Japan Frustrating”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 17 Feb 2022
Origin
- Japanese日系人
- Englishnikkeijin
Borrowed from Japanese 日系人.
More words from Japanese
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
nikkeijin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nikkeijin
MLA
“nikkeijin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nikkeijin. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “nikkeijin,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nikkeijin.
Source: nikkeijin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.