Issei

American  

[ees-sey] / ˈisˈseɪ /

Or issei

noun

plural

Issei, issei

1. a Japanese person who immigrated to the U.S. or Canada after 1907 and was not eligible until 1952 for citizenship.

2. any Japanese immigrant to the U.S.

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Etymology

Origin of Issei

1935–40; < Japanese, equivalent to is first + sei generation (earlier it-sei, it-seĩ < Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese yì one + shēng birth)

Example Sentences

Some Little Tokyo businesses that served Issei and Nisei — Japanese immigrants and their American-born children — have closed or are struggling, while others have found a way to evolve and thrive.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 2, 2024

Abe noted that he might have finished his second novel, about the Issei — the first generation of Japanese American immigrants.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 21, 2023

Some of the Issei, first generation Japanese immigrants, and Nisei kept their experience in the camps a secret as they didn't want to pass on painful memories to the next generations.

From BBC • Feb. 20, 2022

That moment comes late in the film, after the padre and several of his flock have been taken prisoner by Inoue, whose cartoonish portrayal of coldbloodedness, by Issei Ogata, borders on caricature.

From Washington Post • Jan. 5, 2017

They were all Issei, and he was one of the few fluent in Japanese and English.

From "Farewell to Manzanar" by Jeanne Houston