# "African-American": equivalents in other countries? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 5, 2007, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828 "2007-01-05T16:46:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2007, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828/1 "2007-01-05T16:46:22Z")
Do other countries (outside of Africa, obviously) have an equivalent for the US term “African American?” That is, a term deemed more polite or politically correct than the more common (but not necessarily demeaning) “black?” What do they call people of African descent in the UK, for example? When I lived in Ecuador, they were simply called _negros_, literally “blacks,” or _morenos_, literally “darks.” ---
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2007, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828/2 "2007-01-05T17:17:42Z")
In the UK it used to be Afro-Caribbean (most immigration was from the West Indies rather than Africa). I haven’t heard this used for quite a time and Black is more common now. ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2007, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828/3 "2007-01-05T17:19:43Z")
In much of Africa, blacks are called Africans. This got one politician in trouble (ambassador, former governor Michigan G.Mennon Williams?) When he declared that US should foster “Africa for the Africans” meaning the local residents of all colors, not colonial rulers, but the local whites assumed he meant they should be stripped of rights. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2007, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828/4 "2007-01-05T18:53:36Z")
Here in Panama there are two distinct groups of blacks, _afrocoloniales_ (Afro-colonials), descended from slaves brought in during the colonial period, who speak Spanish as their first language; and _afroantilianos_ (Afro-Antillians), descended from workers mainly from British islands of the West Indies, who came in to work on the Panama Railroad, Panama Canal, and banana plantations starting in the mid-1800s, and who mainly speak English as a first language (though most speak Spanish as well). The general term for a black person is _moreno/morena_ (“brown” or “dark”). My understanding is it is considered somewhat rude to refer to a person as _negro_ (“black”), although the diminutive, _negrito/negrita_, is OK. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2007, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828/5 "2007-01-05T19:11:24Z")
Some of the choices from the 2001 UK census: > [@](#): > > **A: White** - British/Irish/other > **B: Mixed** - White and Black Caribbean, White and Black African, etc. > **C: Asian** - Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi/other > **D: Black or Black British** - Caribbean/African/other > **E: Chinese or other ethnic group** Various terms you’re likely to encounter in PC-friendly environments include ‘African-Caribbean’ (not _Afro-_), ‘Black African’, ‘Black British’, ‘Dual or mixed heritage’. Note the emphasis on differentiating between those with origins directly from Africa to Europe, and those of American heritage, because there’s significant populations of both, each with a particular history and particular cultural and social issues. Merely identifying the ‘black’ population doesn’t always help. On the other hand, we’re not as scared of describing _individuals_ as ‘black’ in the appropriate context, i.e. as part of a description of their appearance. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2007, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-american-equivalents-in-other-countries/386828/6 "2007-01-05T21:19:18Z")
[QUOTE=OneCentStamp] Do other countries (outside of Africa, obviously) have an equivalent for the US term “African American?” That is, a term deemed more polite or politically correct than the more common (but not necessarily demeaning) “black?” What do they call people of African descent in the UK, for example? When I lived in Ecuador, they were simply called _negros_, literally “blacks,” or _morenos_, literally “darks.” [/QUOTE] Moreno and negro seem to be racial terms, and they’re pretty self-explanatory if you’re in a country with little black immigration, chances are your blacks there are going to be locals and a racial term is sufficient for identification. They may have a specific ethnic identity separate from their racial identity, but the local variant of black is usually enough. The U.S. is different. This is a land of many ethnicities; blacks are no exception; as such there are at least four distinct black populations here. “African-American” is just the largest ethnic group of blacks, the descendants of U.S. slaves. Every other black group came later. 1. African-Americans subset: Gullah subset: Creoles subset: Tri-Racials 2. Afro-Caribbeans, or West Indians subset: Trinis subset: Haitians subset: Barbados 3. African (naturalized immigrants) subset: Ghanians subset: Kenyans subset: Ethiopians 4. Other blacks New Zealanders, Brazilians, black Canadian immigrants, Indians, and, of course half of Spain