yellow peril

noun Disparaging and Offensive.

(in historical contexts) the alleged danger that predominantly white Western civilizations and populations could be overwhelmed by Asian peoples.
the Asian peoples regarded as presenting such a danger.
Also called yellow terror.

Origin of yellow peril

First recorded in 1895–1900

usage note for yellow peril

See yellow.

Words nearby yellow peril

yellow newtown, yellow no. 5, yellow pad, yellow pages, yellow perch, yellow peril, yellow pikeperch, yellow pine, yellow poinciana, yellow poplar, yellow puccoon

Example sentences from the Web for yellow peril

British Dictionary definitions for yellow peril

yellow peril

noun

the power or alleged power of Asiatic peoples, esp the Chinese, to threaten or destroy the supremacy of White or Western civilization

Cultural definitions for yellow peril

Yellow Peril

A supposed threat to the United States posed by Japan and China. The phrase arose in the late nineteenth century, at a time when Japanese and Chinese immigration to America was meeting resistance and when Japan was growing as a military power. (See internment of Japanese Americans.)