dictionary definitions for "oriental"


From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:

  oriental
      adj : denoting or characteristic of the biogeographic region
            including southern Asia and the Malay Archipelago as
            far as the Philippines and Borneo and Java; "Oriental
            politeness"; "for people of South and East Asian
            ancestry the term `Asian' is preferred to `Oriental'";
            "Asian ancestry" [syn: Asian]
      n : a member of an Oriental race [syn: Oriental, {oriental
          person}]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Oriental \O`ri*en"tal\ ([=o]`r[i^]*[e^]n"tal), a. [L.
     orientalis: cf. F. oriental.]
     Of or pertaining to the orient or east; eastern; concerned
     with the East or Orientalism; -- opposed to occidental; as,
     Oriental countries.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           The sun's ascendant and oriental radiations. --Sir T.
                                                    Browne.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Oriental \O`ri*en"tal\, n.
     1. A native or inhabitant of the Orient or some Eastern part
        of the world; an Asiatic.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. pl. (Eccl.) Eastern Christians of the Greek rite.
        [1913 Webster]


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