Edited by Azizi Powell,
This pancocojams post presents an excerpt from a 2015 Lipstick Alley discussion thread about so-called "Ghetto names" in the United States.
This excerpt showcases a brief comment exchange about the use of the West African female name "Fatou" as a slur against Black African females in the nation of France.
Addendum #! of this post quotes an AI Overview write-up from November 16, 2025 about this subject.
Addendum #2 of this post presents selected comments from a Reddit.com discussion thread about the word "kehlouch". That word is found in the Lipstick Alley.com comment that is given in this post as comment #7 in that main potion of this post.
The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, and onomastic ** purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
These comments refer to the geographical area in Africa called the Maghrib. Here's some information about the Maghrib from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MaghrebheMaghreb (/ˈmɑːɡrəb/;[2] Arabic: ْاَلْمَغْرِب, romanized: al-Maghrib, lit. 'The
place where the sun sets' [ælˈmaɣrɪb] ⓘ), also known as the Arab Maghreb ... is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western
and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and
Tunisia. The Maghreb also includes the disputed territory of Western Sahara. As
of 2018, the region had a population of over 100 million people"...
** "Onomastic" means the study of the origin, history, meaning, and use of proper names.
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/11/are-fatima-and-fatou-problematic-names.html for the closely related pancocojams post "Are Fatima And Fatou Problematic Names In The United States?"
****
DISCLAIMER
The information and opinions that are given in these comments are those of the commenters.
I know nothing about France and therefore, I can't substantiate or refute these 2015 comments. If they were true, I'm not able to describe the attitudes and interactions between these populations and genders since 2015.
If you have any information about this subject, please share it in the comment section of this pancocojams post. Thanks in advance.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE NAME "FATOU"
From AI Overview"
"Fatou is a name of West African origin, primarily associated
with the Wolof language spoken in countries like Senegal and The Gambia. The
name is also common in other West African countries and among Mandinka
speakers, and it has roots in the Arabic name Fatima.
Wolof: In Wolof, the name is widely used and is often given
to girls born on Friday, as Friday is considered a holy day in Islam.
Mandinka: The Mandinka people often use the more formal
version, Fatoumata.
Other regions: The name is also found in other West African
countries and diaspora communities.
Arabic roots: The name is a West African adaptation of the
Arabic name Fatima, the name of Prophet Muhammad's daughter."
****
DESCRIPTION ABOUT HOW THESE COMMENTS ARE PRESENTED
"Lipstick Alley.com prides itself as being the oldest and largest Black discussion thread on the internet. While there are some non-Black commenters on that discussion thread, almost all of the comments are Black people from various nations throughout the world. The language that is used in that discussion thread is English.
**
WARNING: Lipstick Alley.com discussion threads often include profanity.
When profanity is quoted on this pancocojams blog, I use incomplete spelling (indicated by an asterisk) after that word and an editorial note under that comment.
**
These discussion thread comments are presented in chronological order with numbers given for referencing purposes only. Those numbers aren't the same as the numbers that those comments have in that long (10 page) discussion thread.
****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THIS LIPSTICK ALLEY.COM DISCUSSION THREAD
https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/someone-explain-to-me-why-names-like-shaniqua-keisha-are-considered-ghetto.877825/
1. Thread starterFlvcko tha pmf , Start date: May 25, 2015
"Someone explain to me why names like "shaniqua,keisha
..." are considered ghetto?
****
https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/someone-explain-to-me-why-names-like-shaniqua-keisha-are-considered-ghetto.877825/page-5
2. Queen Regina, May 26, 2015
"You answered your question.
In France it is the same. Girls named Fatou, Maimouna,
Chainez, Fatima, Soraya, Aissata are considered ghetto because those who have
these names are Black or Maghrebis.
In fact, dudes like to call Black girls "Fatou" or "Fatou flinguée" (Trash Fatou). And most of these dudes that make these jokes a French Black men (they are the most f--ked* up Black dudes I have ever seen). Even though you can find this name in the Quran.
Like one day my mom was called Fatou on the streets by Maghrebi dudes and their Black male friends were laughing. My mom not only put those Maghrebi dudes in their place, she said to the Black guys that they are weak af and those north african friends would never thrash their sisters. :\
There are also Congolese name French twitter like to joke
about: Altesse (Royalty), Dieudonné (God Given), Maman Chérie (Lovely mum).
They are all in French.”
-snip-
This word is dully spelled out in this comment.
3. Reply to Queen Regina from Sofie,
"This is the exact point I was making. In America, it is called um foo-foo. I have no idea why people think any type of name will get a pass just because it has a "meaning".
That is just NOT true! Hate to break it to people!"
**
3. Reply to Sofie from Queen Regina,May 26, 2015
"Wait. So you are saying that parents should not call their daughters " Fatou"
**
4. Reply to Queen Regina from Sofie, May 26, 2025
'Parents can call their kids whatever they want! MY point in that MANY names get teased and ostracized, even those that have legit meanings. This is something that many black americans do not realize."
**
5. Reply to Sofie from Queen Regina, May 26, 2015
"Oh yeah than I agree with you.
But the f--ked* up part in France, is that they know
the meaning ! Most of those who make fun of these names are African men ! And
then of course, white folks jump on the bandwagon and make fun of these names
too"
-snip-
This word is fully spelled out in this comment.
6.
"Do black men in France get the same treatment? Or just black
women? Do blacks and magheribs get along well in France?"
**
7. Reply to Calypso Indigo (former screen name Chocolatea) from Queen Regina, May 26, 2015
"Well first of all, Black men in France are weak af. No
unity, want to have a Marie or a Soraya, trashes Black women 24h.
They like to be friend with Maghrebis but maghrebis like to
make fun of them and they would be the first to stab them on the back to help a
maghrebi brother.
Black men in France are call "kahlouch" by
maghrebis which is a pejorative way of saing Black. Maghrebis families do
not accept Blacks even though they are muslim Blacks
Black muslim guys wants to be maghrebis so bad, the others
they want also want to date maghrebis girls, white passing west indies girls
(exxoticals) or white girls.
They even have an hashtag on twitter to make fun of BW
#Noirte . "Noirte" is a childish way of saying
"Noire"/Black Women.
They still suffer racism, that is why they are frustrated,
they prefer to kiss other people's ass. While BW will be the first to defend
them."
-snip-
This is the complete exchange in that discussion thread about those names being used as insults or otherwise looked down upon at that time in France.
Read information about the word "kahlouch" in this post's comment section below.
****
ADDENDUM #1- AI OVERVIEW ABOUT THIS SUBJECT
given as a result of my November 16, 2025 question "Was and/or is the name "Fatou" used to insult or look down upon Black females in France?"
AI Overview
"There is no evidence that the name "Fatou" itself
is used to tease or taunt Muslim women in France as a widely recognized or
specific slur. The name is an honorable and common given name, primarily of
West African origin, derived from the Arabic name Fatima, the daughter of the
Prophet Muhammad.
However, the question touches on the broader context of
Islamophobia and racial insults that do occur in France, sometimes targeting
Muslim women based on their perceived origins or religious attire. Slurs in
France generally tend to be ethnic or religious slurs like bicot or bougnoule
(targeting Arabs/Muslims generally), or slang terms such as beur/beurette
(which are complex but can be used in a derogatory way).
The name "Fatou" is deeply embedded in West
African Muslim cultures, carrying connotations of blessing and good fortune.
While a person named Fatou could unfortunately be subject to general racist or
Islamophobic abuse, the name itself is not a specific, established term of
abuse in the French language or slang.
Related links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beur"
****
ADDENDUM #2 -SELECTED COMMENTS FROM REDDIT.COM'S ASK MORROCO FORUM
Numbers are added for referencing purposes only and don't conform to the numbers that these comments have in thats discussion thread.
From https://www.reddit.com/r/Morocco/comments/1h73eqq/kehlouch_meaning_i_am_concerned
"Kehlouch meaning, I am concerned."
1. Vlad_Tz, 2024
"I am from East Africa, one of my Moroccan friends usually
writes long texts to me with words I don't understand. One of them is Kehlouch
or something like that.
What does it mean? He usually adds a laugh emoji after
that..he never tells me what it means even when I confront him about it. What
could it possibly mean?"
**
2. Elmapuche, 2024
"Not the best nickname, it basically means the black guy.
EDIT: As for the insult part.. Honestly, it depends.
Moroccan culture is quite unique and tends to be more tolerant of nicknames
based on physical traits. For example, a fat man might be called “fat,” a
skinny person could be nicknamed after a brand of cigarettes, and Chinese
people (or even all Asians) might be called “Chinwi.” While this might sound
offensive in some cultures, it’s often not meant that way in Moroccan culture.
Similarly, in South America, it’s common for skinny women to be called “Flaca,” blond people “Rubio,” or other nicknames based on appearance or local context, and these terms aren’t typically seen as offensive.
I wouldn’t necessarily reconsider the friendship over this, but it’s definitely worth having a conversation to better understand their intentions and clarify how it makes you feel."
3.
"Is it used as insult?"
4.
"depends on the context and relationship with the person"
**
5.
"He's a friend, we met when Raja was in Tanzania about a year
ago. We only discuss serious things and sometimes political stuff i.e Ukraine
Russia war etc."
**
6. [deleted], 2024
"Ka7louch mean black, or ni--er* and it’s a racist word, the
one who tell you no it dépend doesn’t understand what racism mean."
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in this comment.
**
7. Saad1950, 2024
"Tbh Moroccan culture is strange in this regard where we
didn't get the racism is bad update lmfao. People call black people 3ezzi here
all the time which is like an almost 1:1 version of the n word. Ke7louch on the
other hand is like what a mom would call a little black kid as a form of
endearment. It's a diminutive of the word k7el which means black. There is also
3ezzi balala lmfao and many more. One time I heard nsib dlam which was pretty
funny.
**.
8. marouane_tea, 2024
"N-word got its bad rep for being used to designate African
slaves in the US in a bad way. 3azzi comes from 3ziz, meaning "dear
one" as a form of brotherhood. So 3azzi is the opposite of N-word."
**
9. Saad1950, 2024
"No no, etymology of the word here could not matter less.
It's how it's used, which is very reminiscent of the n word's usage."
**
10. http-Iyad, 2024
"it has nothing to do with slave ??
Kehlouch/ kehloucha is black person ( masculine and feminine )
Khalech / kehlouchat is the plural ( feminine and masculine )
Literally stop getting ignorant and oversensitive'
11.
"Dude, this person for sure doesn’t speak darija if they
think it’s slave or they are just a bad person spreading hate and
misinformation… if u don’t like the nickname tell your friend it makes you
uncomfortable if he still doesn’t stop or take u srsly unfriend him. Not worth"
-snip-
Here's information about the word "Darija" from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moroccan_Arabic
"Moroccan Arabic (Arabic: العربية المغربية الدارجة,
romanized: al-ʻArabiyyah al-Maghribiyyah ad-Dārija[3] lit. 'Moroccan vernacular
Arabic'), also known as Darija (الدارجة or الداريجة[3]), is the dialectal,
vernacular form or forms of Arabic spoken in Morocco.[4][5] It is part of the
Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum and as such is mutually intelligible to some
extent with Algerian Arabic and to a lesser extent with Tunisian Arabic. It is
spoken by 91.9% of the population of Morocco, with 80.6% of Moroccans considering
it their native language.[6]
While Modern Standard Arabic is used to varying degrees in formal situations such as religious sermons, books, newspapers, government communications, news broadcasts and political talk shows, Moroccan Arabic is the predominant spoken language of the country and has a strong presence in Moroccan television entertainment, cinema and commercial advertising."...
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
No comments:
Post a Comment