The worst thing I have ever been called in Japanese is ノンジャパ (non-Japa). Admin people at a university I attended long ago used it to refer to the foreign students.

I have never been fond of the English term "non-Japanese," either: Who wants to be defined in terms of what they aren't? More importantly, in Japanese it would be 非日本人 (hi-Nihonjin), which is rarely used.

No, I am a 外国人 (gaikokujin), which is best translated as "foreigner." Yes, some people still use 外人 (gaijin), but don't worry, I will not start another tedious debate about whether that term is offensive. I have a bigger problem with how it is used: Even the obscure 外賓 (gaihin, esteemed foreign guest) would be annoying if shouted by a finger-pointing 7-year-old boy while a bemused parent stood by doing nothing.

At least terms like 内地人 (naichijin) and 外地人 (gaichijin) are no longer necessary to distinguish between the people of the Japanese islands (the former) and those of its Korean and Taiwanese colonies (the latter). However, 在日 (Zainichi, literally, "in Japan") persists as shorthand for the ethnic Korean population, despite their having been in the country for generations. As such usage illustrates, there remain some basic distinctions between those who are Japanese and those who are not — difference reflected in both law and language.

For example, when Japanese people go to other countries they become 邦人 (hōjin, Japanese expatriates), whereas I just become part of the crowd. Similarly, Japanese people — even those who aren't politicians! — commonly use 我が国 (wagakuni, my/our country") as a synonym for Japan; if I tried to do so, it would probably just confuse people.

Foreigners are outside the ambit of 国民 (kokumin, the people of the nation), whose rights are clearly protected by the Constitution, though they may contribute to and (maybe) benefit from the 国民年金 (kokumin nenkin, national pension) and 国民健康保険 (kokumin kenkō hoken, national health insurance) schemes. More confusingly, there are actually special benefit programs for some elderly 在日外国人（日本国籍を取得した者を含む (Zainichi gaikokujin [Nihon kokuseki o shutoku shita mono o fukumu], resident foreigners [including those who have acquired Japanese citizenship]) who have not made enough contributions to be eligible for kokumin nenkin payments.

Some specific constitutional protections are articulated using 何人も (nanpito mo, any/no person). This is a citizenship-neutral phrase used in negative formulations such as 何人も、自己に不利益な供述を強要されない (Nanpito mo, jiko no furiekina kyōjutsu o kyōyō sarenai, "No person shall be compelled to testify against her/himself").

I think I can call myself a 市民 (shimin, citizen) of Kyoto; I live there and pay taxes, and both the English and Japanese terms actually mean "inhabitant of a city," in any case. However, I don't have 市民権 (shiminken), which means "citizenship," and which usually comes up when talking about other countries where there may be a meaningful difference between nationality (an international law concept) and citizenship (a domestic, political one).

Japanese law focuses on 国籍 (kokuseki, nationality) and makes some basic distinctions between those who have it and those who don't. Japanese nationals have a 戸籍 (koseki, family registry) reflecting a 本籍 (honseki), a geographical location somewhere in Japan, even if they were born and raised abroad. By contrast, 在日外国人 (Zainichi gaikokujin, foreign nationals resident in Japan) do not, even if they were born and raised in Tokushima. Honseki is sometimes mistakenly translated as "domicile" in English, though it has nothing to do with residence or place of birth: So long as you are a Japanese national, you could theoretically register the top of Mount Fuji or the Imperial Palace as your honseki. Japanese people can also use 入籍 (nyūseki, record in the family registry) as a synonym for getting married. Foreigners could too, I suppose, though technically they don't have koseki in which to register a marriage.

Having a different relationship to Japan than most Japanese-speakers creates some issues. How should I refer to my return from a temporary trip abroad? A Japanese person would say 帰国 (kikoku, to return to one's country), but can I? Dictionaries offer 帰省 (kisei) and 帰郷 (kikyō) as synonyms, but both have the nuance of returning to one's place of birth. Japan is home for me now but I was born elsewhere. Even if I did use kikoku, how is the person I am communicating with supposed to know that I am not threatening to return to my native land? And what term do I use when (if?) I actually do that for good.

In conversation I can use 戻る (modoru, to return to a specific place) rather than 帰る (kaeru, to return home). However, in writing, 戻 (rei) lacks the Lego block-like flexibility of 帰 (ki), and apparently lacks common corollaries to useful combinations like 帰国後 (kikokugo, after I return to my country) or 帰国予定日 (kikokuyoteibi, scheduled date of return to my country).

I suppose I could use 再入国 (sai'nyūkoku, re-entering the country), since that is what I will technically be doing for immigration law purposes. But it is probably a pretty obscure term for the vast majority of Japanese people who entered the country through birth rather than pursuant to a 上陸許可 (jōriku kyoka, landing permit), as I did.

I suppose it cuts both ways: A Japanese person may leave Japan, but wherever they go it will probably always be a 外国 (gaikoku, foreign country). The 内 (uchi, inside) and 外 (soto, outside) thing runs deep indeed.