noun
person with a skin disease; syphilitic patient
Dated colloquial term, now largely replaced by medical vocabulary. Historically used as a derogatory label for someone with visible skin lesions, especially syphilis.
昔は「瘡掻き」と呼ばれて差別される人もいた。
In the past, some people were discriminated against by being called 'kasakaki'.
Modern medical term for syphilis, neutral and clinical, unlike the derogatory and dated 瘡掻き.
General term for skin disease; neutral and widely used, whereas 瘡掻き is a dated, stigmatizing label.
Compound of 瘡 (かさ, 'skin sore, scab') and 掻き (かき, nominal form of 掻く 'to scratch'). Literally 'scab-scratcher', referring to a person with visible skin lesions. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term reflects pre-modern attitudes toward skin diseases.