Many non-Western cultures have informal words which refer to white Westerners. Because of the current economic and political power of Europe and North America and the history of European imperialism, the inhabitants of many countries may encounter people from these regions more than those from other regions, as tourists, businessmen and political representatives. The following is a list of words that non-Western languages use to refer to people from the West. These words may mean "foreigner" in general, but are popularly applied to foreigners of European ancestry specifically. Some, but not all, may have a pejorative tone.