Open Letter To Tourists: Explaining the Word Vazaha (Malagasy Word for Foreigner)

(Note: When you come to Madagascar, it is common for children and
people around you to say "vazaha" when you walk by. You will hear
this word many times every day. Typically, foreigners take this word
to be derogatory. This letter explains the Malagasy perspective.)

Dear Vazaha,

This word is not as bad as you might think it is. It is neither an
impolite one nor a pejorative one. Usually foreign people are called
"vazaha" in Madagascar because of their white skin and it happens that
even local people get the same appellation. So please don't feel
rejected because of this word.

To be white means a lot for Malagasy people. It might mean rich,
powerful, smart, intelligent or beautiful. To illustrate that,
remember when you went into town in Madagascar, you might have noticed
that most Malagasy girls try to look more "Western" than African:
their hair turned from curly to straight, their skin with quite a lot
of cream to be more clear and also western clothes. So don't think
that Malagasy people hate white people—they just want to be like you.

Some vazaha, like you, my dear friend, don't really understand the
cultural values of term Malagasy term towards the foreigners. So, now
let me tell you something in particular about the Northern part of our
island and then you might understand that to be called vazaha is far
from what you think. The ethnic "Merina" (from the center of
Madagascar) are called "Borizany" which is very pejorative and the
Indian people are called "Karana" which is also pejorative. The
Merina have a bad history toward the people in the coast because of
the historical even when the Kind Radama 1 wanted to overpower the
entire island which cost the life of many people. The Indian people,
for their part, used to neglect Malagasy people and treat them almost
like slaves. But for the Arabic people who married with our women and
lived among us—to be called Arab is not a way fo race discrimination
it is just a way of being more specific about the person you are
talking about. So being called "vazaha" has nothing to deal with
hatred because you bring money to our country, you bring jobs and you
agree to mix with us.

My dear friend vazaha, next time you come to Madagacar and hopefully
to Diego, don't get upset when people call you vazaha. But if you
really want to be sure that it is not a bad word, just call them back
"vazaha" and I am 100% sure they will be happy to be called vazaha.

Take care! Vazaha!

Hishaam (lwahcool2006@live.fr)