feringhees

FERINGHEE is an adaptation of the Indo Persian term frangi or firingi used to denote a person of European origin. It is dervied from Frank, "a member of a group of ancient Germanic peoples dwelling in the regions of the Rhine, one division of whom, the Salians, conquered Gaul [modern France so named after them] about AD 500." Turks were the first Asian people to come in contact with Franks whom they called frangi, a name applied to all Europeans. Europeans who came to India following the arrival in 1498 at Calicut of Vasco de Gama, a Portuguese explorer, were also called Feringhees.