Off-Ramp interview with Korean-American filmmaker Andrew Ahn spurs "First Generation" debate

James Kim

Filmmaker Andrew Ahn and Off-Ramp host John Rabe.

In my interview with Andrew Ahn, the gay Korean-American filmmaker, whose short film Dol premiered last weekend at Sundance, I said he was "first generation," meaning he was of the first generation of his family to be born in the US.

And that started the debate that's simmering online.

Sky says: "Being involved in the Asian American community and being Asian American myself, I have to say that, despite what the dictionary says, Ahn is a second generation Korean American. His parents, having moved here form Korea, would be considered the first generation pioneers."

Clara writes: "For Koreans, I am a 1.5 generation because I was born in Korea and grew up somewhere else, my parents are 1st generation because they were born and grew up in Korea and then immigrated. My children are 2nd. generation because although of Korean descent, they were born in somewhere else."

I absolutely do not discount these accounts, but as a journalist, the anecdotal needs to be backed up with authoritative, and so far, the definition is not clear-cut. (Plus, probably 40,000 people heard the interview, presumably many of these are immigrants themselves, and they did not comment, meaning at least some of them think I got it right.)

Here's what Dictionary.com says:

1.being the first generation of a family to be born in a particular country. 2.being a naturalized citizen of a particular country; immigrant: the child of first-generation Americans.

And here's Merriam-Webster Unabridged:

1 : born in the U.S. -- used of an American of immigrant parentage. 2 : FOREIGN-BORN -- used of a naturalized American.

In essence, either one is accepted usage. I queried the journalism Bible, the AP Stylebook, but didn't get an answer.

What do you think? Please weigh-in.

(Meantime, this week on Off-Ramp, we welcome the Year of the Dragon with 500,000 firecrackers and a chat with Miss Chinatown 2011, a longtime KPCC listener. Listen here.)