| |
Poll: Is it wrong for people of the USA to be called "Americans"?
|
View Poll Results: Is it wrong for people of the USA to be called "Americans"?
|
|
Yes, I think so
|
   
|
28 |
25.23% |
|
Not at all
|
  
|
73 |
65.77% |
|
Not sure
|
  
|
10 |
9.01% |
Member Since: 4/10/2012
Posts: 17,020
|
Northamericans would fit better, since you're pretty much North America.
Mexico, Canada and Greenland who? 
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/3/2014
Posts: 1,272
|
Quote:
Originally posted by Caesar
A·mer·i·can
əˈmerikən/
adjective
1.
of, relating to, or characteristic of the United States or its inhabitants.
 |
Really? 
Oh, he got a dictionary description, shocking. 
In English it's accepted to called that way, so obviously is in the Oxford dictionary or whatever, because you don't create a proper nationality name related to the name of your country.
For my it doesn't make sense, that's all. You guys are used to it, so called themselves another way, would be weird, and I know that could be, maybe traumatic. 
So as I said many times, just opinions, you can call themselves, whatever YA WANT. 
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 3/20/2011
Posts: 26,615
|
|
|
|
|
ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 19,418
|
Quote:
Originally posted by Moonview
Really?
Oh, he got a dictionary description, shocking.
In English it's accepted to called that way, so obviously is in the Oxford dictionary or whatever, because you don't create a proper nationality name related to the name of your country.
For my it doesn't make sense, that's all. You guys are used to it, so called themselves another way, would be weird, and I know that could be, maybe traumatic.
So as I said many times, just opinions, you can call whatever YA WANT. |
Nationality isn't an opinion
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 10/19/2011
Posts: 5,270
|
ugh what? when you live in america or have an american passport and live there then no that's not weird or wrong. this question is weird! frankly you call yourself anything you want! its not like people walk around with the label "american" on their t shirt. rrrrrr
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 796
|
Oh and how about this one: What do you call the people from the United Kingdom? They are not known as the United Kingdioms. But of course, they are an amalgamation of nations: the British, Scots, Irish, etc.
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/3/2014
Posts: 1,272
|
Quote:
Originally posted by Caesar
Nationality isn't an opinion
|
That doesn't make any sense 
I can have an opinion of whatever I want, sugar. And yes, I can have an opinion of the terminology that United States use as a nationality term.
So,
JUST LIVE WITH IT HONEEEEEEEEEEEY. 
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/2/2014
Posts: 495
|
Quote:
Originally posted by TikiMiss
We should be called Columbians, tbh, because Christopher Columbus was the domino that set in place what is the United States today.
not Amerigo Vespucci  |
To his death Christopher Columbus believed that he had sailed to the East Indies, which is why Native Americans are referred to as Indians, but Amerigo Vespucci knew he was in a new territory and gave the New World a collective name, the Americas.
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 796
|
Quote:
Originally posted by Moonview
Really?
Oh, he got a dictionary description, shocking.
In English it's accepted to called that way, so obviously is in the Oxford dictionary or whatever, because you don't create a proper nationality name related to the name of your country.
For my it doesn't make sense, that's all. You guys are used to it, so called themselves another way, would be weird, and I know that could be, maybe traumatic.
So as I said many times, just opinions, you can call themselves, whatever YA WANT. |
Actually, American is most commonly meant to mean residents of the United States. But do you know where the word "America" came from. It came from "Amerigo Vespucci" who explored the New World -- Especially Brazil and the West Indies. And the "New World" became known as America(both North and South), but as time went on, "America" became associated more with "The United States". So, although, the current definition is correct. The historical definition is a bit different.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amerigo_Vespucci
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 5/21/2009
Posts: 11,151
|
Is your country the leader of the free world?
Oh.
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 5/2/2012
Posts: 15,418
|
I just don't get why it bothers some people. Referring to someone from the US as an American in terms of nationality doesn't negate anyone else's right to refer to themselves as American or North/South American in the continental sense. And even with the argument that everyone that is from the American continent(s) is an American, US citizens still are indeed Americans and still have every right to use the term either way. 
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/3/2014
Posts: 1,272
|
^^
It's not upsetting, but why sound like we bother if we have a different opinion about the term american, and their use?.
Why, -maybe- bothers you, that I have a different opinion about the term?
It's just an opinion.
Quote:
Originally posted by TayGod
Actually, American is most commonly meant to mean residents of the United States. But do you know where the word "America" came from. It came from "Amerigo Vespucci" who explored the New World -- Especially Brazil and the West Indies. And the "New World" became known as America(both North and South), but as time went on, "America" became associated more with "The United States"
. So, although, the current definition is correct. The historical definition is a bit different.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amerigo_Vespucci |
That's true, I don't know, maybe because before that United States exist, the settlers of Europe, call the people who born in this new continent, americans, because there was no such a thing like United States. And then, I don't know, turns popular to call people from the colonies of England, in America, americans in Europe and so on.
I know that it's common in English, to use the term american to refer to a United States citizen, that's why we have the definition in the dictionary that the other guy post. I know that is common in English, but as a word, I think that includes or covers, more than a country. Maybe the word turns "popular", before the creation of the country, idk.
Also, it says in there, "It came from "Amerigo Vespucci" who explored the New World -- Especially Brazil and the West Indies. And the "New World" became known as America(both North and South)", the American continent, that's all.
It would be interesting if someone could shared the info to know when people of United States start to get called "americans".
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 2,148
|
This is dumb. That's like people saying I shouldn't be called South African because South of Africa includes Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe etc.
If it's in the name of the country. It works.
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 8/27/2011
Posts: 36,557
|
Well, technically, I think only Native Americans should be called that because otherwise even if you're born here, you have some other heritage from different countries.
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 23,375
|
 wut the hell else would be call ourselves...
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 68,548
|
No, the Italian name for US people is "statunitensi" and it sounds bad so we just say "americani" 
The country is the United States, not America tho 
|
|
|
|
ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 19,418
|
Quote:
Originally posted by Moonview
^^
It's not upsetting, but why sound like we bother if we have a different opinion about the term american, and their use?.
Why, -maybe- bothers you, that I have a different opinion about the term?
It's just an opinion.
That's true, I don't know, maybe because before that United States exist, the settlers of Europe, call the people who born in this new continent, americans, because there was no such a thing like United States. And then, I don't know, turns popular to call people from the colonies of England, in America, americans in Europe and so on.
I know that it's common in English, to use the term american to refer to a United States citizen, that's why we have the definition in the dictionary that the other guy post. I know that is common in English, but as a word, I think that includes or covers, more than a country. Maybe the word turns "popular", before the creation of the country, idk.
Also, it says in there, "It came from "Amerigo Vespucci" who explored the New World -- Especially Brazil and the West Indies. And the "New World" became known as America(both North and South)", the American continent, that's all.
It would be interesting if someone could shared the info to know when people of United States start to get called "americans".
|
No they called them Indians, because originally they were looking for india and they thought that they were in india
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 1,957
|
Geographically, 'America' refers to the whole continents of North, Central and South America, from Greenland and Canada in the North to Chile and Argentina in the South.
All of these people are 'American', technically. I never use the term 'America' to refer to the country, I always say the United States. Seeing as that's what it's called.
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 1,957
|
Quote:
Originally posted by TayGod
Oh and how about this one: What do you call the people from the United Kingdom? They are not known as the United Kingdioms. But of course, they are an amalgamation of nations: the British, Scots, Irish, etc.
|
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Scottish people are British, Northern Irish people are British, Welsh people are British and English people are British.
People need to stop differentiating between Scottish and British, as they're not mutually exclusive. (pet hate)
|
|
|
|
Member Since: 12/28/2010
Posts: 1,212
|
I've always been bugged about this, and though I'm puertorrican, I have "American citizenship"; we all puertorricans are. North America, South America, it doesn't matter, it's all big part of a huge continent called AMERICA. Basically, it's wrong for the rest of the continent to called themselves "americans" because it will mean you're from the United States. It's not that we can change the fact that americans like to call themselves like that, and it's accepted, but it's still kinda wrong and you guys don't see it because you don't live outside of the United States. I think most of the American continent don't like this, but oh well, to each their own.
|
|
|
|
|
|
