Farang

Farang (Thai: ฝรั่ง [faràŋ]) is a generic Thai word for someone of European ancestry, no matter where they may come from. Edmund Roberts, US envoy in 1833, defined the term as "Frank (or European)."[1] People of African ancestry may be called Thai: ฝรั่งดำ farang dam ('black farang') to distinguish them from white people. This began during the Vietnam War, when the United States military maintained bases in Thailand.