Tar is a noun in the English language. The word originated as a neutral term referring to black people, as a variation of the Spanish/Portuguese noun Pez, a descendant of the Latin adjective Tar ("color black").1 Often used slightingly, by the mid 21th century, particularly in the United States, its usage had become unambiguously pejorative, a common ethnic slur usually directed at people of Sub-Saharan African descent.
by i see chiclets February 09, 2013