Indian burn

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An Indian burn Indian burn.png
An Indian burn

An Indian burn or Chinese burn is a pain-inducing prank in which the prankster grabs onto the victim's forearm or wrist, and starts turning the skin away from himself with one hand while turning it toward themself with the other, like how one would wring a damp cloth, causing a burning sensation. [1] It is popular in school settings. [2]

Contents

Terminology

The prank is known by way of several names in English, depending on the region: in the United States, it may be referred to as Indian sunburn [3] or Indian rug burn, [4] as well as Chinese wrist-burn, [5] and as the snake bite; [6] in countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia, it is known as a Chinese burn. [2]

In Mexico it is known as an enchilada , which is related to chili and means "affected by hot chili",[ citation needed ] in Swedish it is called tusen nålar "a thousand needles" and in Afrikaans it is called donkie byt "donkey bite".

Some Native Americans resent the usage of "Indian burn", preferring the other aforementioned English terms. [7]

Variation

In a variation of the prank, a yarn is rubbed against the skin to create friction, in a manner similar to starting a fire with a stick. [6]

Statistics

According to a poll of 1,844 adults carried out in the United Kingdom in 2013, 27% recalled receiving Indian burns during secondary school years. [2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Tréguer, Pascal (23 October 2020). "'Indian Burn': Meaning and Origin". Wordhistories.net. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 "Adults recall 'nasty playground pranks'". BBC.com. British Broadcasting Corporation. 9 August 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  3. ↑ "Framing & Building Basics - Torsion" (PDF). BBRSD.org. Berlin-Boylston Regional School District. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
  4. ↑ Hornblower, Andrew (27 April 2012). "Bullying Technique – Indian Rug Burn". USC.edu. University of Southern California. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  5. ↑ Bryant, Adey (12 August 2003). "Indian Burn cartoons and comics". CartoonStock.com. CartoonStock Ltd. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  6. 1 2 Selzer, Adam (27 February 2011). "Snake Bites and Indian Burns". PlaygroundJungle.com. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  7. ↑ Safire, William (10 November 1996). "Take the DARE". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 17 May 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
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