foreign ship (historical); Dutch ship (early use)
Archaic colloquial term from the Edo period. Originally referred to Dutch ships (literally 'red-hair ships'), later extended to all Western foreign vessels. Not used in modern Japanese except in historical contexts.
In the Edo period, Dutch ships (紅毛船) called at Nagasaki.
The word 紅毛船 originally referred to Dutch ships, but later came to mean Western ships in general.