When does Hapa cease to be Hapa

[Faithless]

I've been looking for any article to support an idea of mine on race and what does it really mean in the end.  My idea centers around this term "Hapa".

http://www.genetics.org/cgi/content/abstract/156/1/361
(This article may not explain jack. But it shows others think about it too.  :blink: )

What is Hapa, really?  A white person and an Asian person bare a child named Half.  We would consider Half to be Hapa.

Now, Half decides to bare a child with an Asian person and name that child Three-Quarter.

Down the road, Three-Quarter mates with an Asian to produce Seven-Eights.

Is Three-Quarter and Seven-Eights considered Hapa?

What if this type of lineage keeps mating with other Asians to produce an even more refined Hapa. Is it possible for this Hapa line to become Asian?  Or just remain asymptotically Asian?

[Hiroshi2]

I don't think there's a definite "line" we can agree on (and this is something that pertains to all biracial people, not just people who are half-asian or even hapas). I think when you can honestly say that you really don't have any cultural connection to your non-asian side or whatever, then that's when you really can't call yourself "multi-cultural". I suppose it's sure to happen once you talk about one-eight or 1/16 hapas or whatever....... ;)

[AliBabaIncorporated]

a hapa ceases to be hapa when all his living grandparents are Asian or hapa, usually. A guy with 3 Asian grandparents and 1 hapa grandparent, I've never heard him to describe himself as "mixed," just "I'm Chinese but my great-grandma was white" or something.

[BeTheReds]

<!--QuoteBegin-ChottoMatte+Jul 26 2003, 06:22 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (ChottoMatte @ Jul 26 2003, 06:22 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->

Is Three-Quarter and Seven-Eights considered Hapa?

What if this type of lineage keeps mating with other Asians to produce an even more refined Hapa. Is it possible for this Hapa line to become Asian? Or just remain asymptotically Asian? [/b][/quote]
Ask Kasia.

I'd say the hapa line becomes Asian once the offspring and parents are visibly Asian.

[Faithless]

Definition of Hapa from this site:

http://www.arts.ucsb.edu/faculty/seaweed/a...ut/hapa-def.htm

Of mixed racial heritage with partial roots in Asian and/or Pacific Islander ancestory.

Using this definition, a person that is 28/29-th Asian would be considered Hapa.

I'm just imagining the possibilities, really.

[MellowDrama]

<!--QuoteBegin-BeTheReds+Jul 26 2003, 10:14 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (BeTheReds @ Jul 26 2003, 10:14 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> <!--QuoteBegin-ChottoMatte+Jul 26 2003, 06:22 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (ChottoMatte @ Jul 26 2003, 06:22 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->

Is Three-Quarter and Seven-Eights considered Hapa?

What if this type of lineage keeps mating with other Asians to produce an even more refined Hapa. Is it possible for this Hapa line to become Asian? Or just remain asymptotically Asian? [/b][/quote]
Ask Kasia.

I'd say the hapa line becomes Asian once the offspring and parents are visibly Asian. [/b][/quote]
so a hapa who looks Asian already transcends hapa-dom?&nbsp; :o

[yoMAMA]

I think it would depend on the cultural enviroments:

For example, like in the U.S, where 'race' is very important, it would take like who knows,

But if you are in China, where 'race' is more of a cultural thing other than a 'race' thing...

[AkiraKodi]

"Hapa" is Hawaiian for Half. I think that's self explanatory.

[Faithless]

But it seems that people use the term generically to describe folks of mixed-blood. (I could be wrong.)

That being the case, if you're blood is a tiny bit mixed, like 15/16ths, are you really still mixed? Technically, yes, but visually? I guess that's another story, although I've yet to witness someone like that.

Would probably mess with a lot of your Hapa Radars, too.

Originally Posted by AkiraKodi

"Hapa" is Hawaiian for Half. I think that's self explanatory.

[kimpossible]

IMHO the only people that are hapa outside of the 'real' hapa that the word is supposed to represent are the straight up half-Asians and I say this even though it excludes me (I'm a quarter Asian). I just use the word to describe myself because I don't have another good one word answer for the question "What are you?" I've used terms like rice cracka' and quarterjap but that tends to offend people.

But hey, if a white woman who is 1/8th Chinese can represent herself as a Chinese author of Asian American literature and her 1/16th Chinese children as Chinese-American, I guess I'm still in the running.

[SunWuKong]

Originally Posted by Hello_Hapa

But hey, if a white woman who is 1/8th Chinese can represent herself as a Chinese author of Asian American literature and her 1/16th Chinese children as Chinese-American, I guess I'm still in the running.

lisa see?

[kimpossible]

yup

[BeTheReds]

who?

[Faithless]

Originally Posted by Hello_Hapa

yup

Lisa See bio

Lisa See was born in Paris but grew up in Los Angeles, spending much of her time in Chinatown. Her first book, On Gold Mountain: The One Hundred Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family, was a national bestseller and a New York Times Notable Book of 1995. The book traces the journey of Lisa's great-grandfather, Fong See, who overcame obstacles at every step to become the 100-year-old godfather of Los Angeles's Chinatown and the patriarch of a sprawling family.
...
She was honored as National Woman of the Year by the Organization of Chinese American Women in 2001 and will be the recipient of the Chinese American Museum's History Makers Award in Fall 2003.

Ms. See lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two sons.

She sure has written a few novels about China. How did she come by her knowledge?

[AliBabaIncorporated]

http://www.lisasee.com/

Google is your friend. It wants to hug you and kiss you and call you George.