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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!amd!amdcad!lll-crg!well!hplabs!intelca!cadsys!ekwok
From: ekwok@cadsys.UUCP (Kwok Ed)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: Worst of the Bay
Message-ID: <133@cadsys.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 15-Aug-85 12:33:25 EDT
Article-I.D.: cadsys.133
Posted: Thu Aug 15 12:33:25 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 24-Aug-85 00:05:56 EDT
References: <450@olivee.UUCP> <132@cadsys.UUCP> <805@ptsfa.UUCP>
Reply-To: ekwok@cadsys.UUCP (Kwok Ed)
Organization: Intel, Santa Clara, Ca.
Lines: 16


Being a native of Hongkong, supposedly around where the term 'TAI PAN'
comes from, I am surprised to hear from some of you that 'Tai Pan' 
sometimes means the manager of a toilet or something to that effect. 
I have never heard of such usage of the term. To us, (My father, 
and my grandfather also, worked for/with foreign trading firms 
- non-Hongkong capital - most of his career), 'Tai
Pan' is the top expatriate manager - like the president of a local
subsidiary of a foreign firm. I think James Clavell used the term
correctly. Furthermore, I have never heard a local referred to as
a 'Tai Pan', so I think there is also the implicit qualification of
being foreign to be attributed thus. Mind you, though, the term is
NOT intended to be derogatory; most reference to 'Tai Pan' is 
respectful.

Anybody else ?