The word Cushi or Kushi (Hebrew: כּוּשִׁי‎ Hebrew pronunciation: [kuˈʃi] colloquial: [ˈkuʃi]) is generally used in the Hebrew Bible to refer to a dark-skinned person of African descent, equivalent to Greek Αἰθίοψ "Aithíops". In 2012, Kiryat Arba's Chief Rabbi Dov Lior referred to US President Barack Obama as a "kushi" of the West. In contemporary usage, the term can sometimes be regarded as an ethnic slur, akin to the American usage of Nigger.