I have nephews that are half-Korean & half-white. I’ve never asked them if they get this question. Maybe it happens to women more often. I’m guessing, Yes.

One of them lived in the USA his entire life, then moved to Seoul for graduate school and now lives there permanently. I wonder if he gets that question.

Sometimes I see a person that is some interesting mix of heritage and I wonder what it might be. I never ask because I think it would be an odd thing to ask a stranger, especially these days, almost like I’m asking the question from the perspective of — do you belong here.

But, I’m just curious. More from the perspective of where did your parents meet and that sort of thing — just curious about their story.

Maybe some people ask this question so they can fit people into their predetermined default assumptions about anyone with that background.

This reminds me a little of the default question when meeting someone at a party: “What do you do for a living?” We want to know this so we can fit the person into a hierarchy of importance and decide if they are worthy of continuing the chat.

I consciously try to talk about anything else, TV, movies, books, hobbies, current events, politics — although that’s risky.

I might discover that I’m talking to someone at the opposite end of the political spectrum — then what should I do!