# Idiosyncrasies of the Dutch **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [September 23, 2005, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115 "2005-09-23T20:20:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2005, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/21 "2005-09-26T17:55:10Z")
> [@](#): > > There is no confusion, because there is nothing else on Earth called America. There are two continents called North America and South America, neither of which is called America. Neither is the nation called “America”. If we’re allowed to lop off the “United States of”, why aren’t we allowed to lop off the “North” or “South”? And one can perfectly well refer to “the Americas”, meaning North and South together. Meanwhile, it’s perhaps a pet peeve of mine, but “the Americas” is not synonymous with “the Western Hemisphere”. Ireland, Portugal, Iceland, and several African countries all lie entirely in the western hemisphere, as well as large chunks of Great Britain, France, and Spain. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2005, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/22 "2005-09-26T19:32:05Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Meanwhile, it’s perhaps a pet peeve of mine, but “the Americas” is not synonymous with “the Western Hemisphere”. Ireland, Portugal, Iceland, and several African countries all lie entirely in the western hemisphere, as well as large chunks of Great Britain, France, and Spain. Not so. The zero line of longitude going through Britain is a 19th-century invention. “Western hemisphere” already meant (more or less) “New world” long before that. ---
**Author:** ![butler1850](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@butler1850](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/butler1850)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/23 "2005-09-26T21:13:07Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Neither is the nation called “America”. If we’re allowed to lop off the “United States of”, why aren’t we allowed to lop off the “North” or “South”? And one can perfectly well refer to “the Americas”, meaning North and South together. > > Meanwhile, it’s perhaps a pet peeve of mine, but “the Americas” is not synonymous with “the Western Hemisphere”. Ireland, Portugal, Iceland, and several African countries all lie entirely in the western hemisphere, as well as large chunks of Great Britain, France, and Spain. The same reason that those in North Dakota and South Dakota would be angry if you said they were from Dakota. But if you said they were from the Dakotas it’d be ok. I for one will begin to call the country formerly informally know as “Mexico” The United States of Mexico. Actually, No, I won’t. I’m sticking with Mexico for the USM, America for the USA. You know what I mean when I say America, don’t try to pretend otherwise. I will though, retract the above, if some other conglomerate of nations/states in “The Americas” comes up with a name that includes it. e.g. The Latin Association of America. Until then, USA=America is in commmon use. As to the OP, I’d just say things were a bit different in the world in the 17th century and leave it at that. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2005, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/24 "2005-09-27T03:12:15Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Neither is the nation called “America”. If we’re allowed to lop off the “United States of”, why aren’t we allowed to lop off the “North” or “South”? Because then you’d be creating a collision where none existed previously. > [@](#): > > And one can perfectly well refer to “the Americas”, meaning North and South together. And as long as nothing else on Earth is referred to that way, there is no confusion. > [@](#): > > Meanwhile, it’s perhaps a pet peeve of mine, but “the Americas” is not synonymous with “the Western Hemisphere”. Ireland, Portugal, Iceland, and several African countries all lie entirely in the western hemisphere, as well as large chunks of Great Britain, France, and Spain. This is unhelpful pedantry. The line of 0 longitude does not define the western hemisphere in any sense other than a strictly technical one related to latitude/longitude calculations. The western hemisphere is usually defined according to cultural and historical divisions relating to the history of colonization and later political developments growing from that. Simply cutting the Earth in half is a useless tautology springing from a completely arbitrary invention. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/25 "2005-09-27T16:08:20Z")
> [@APB](#): > > Actually, what they mention is a fall in real estate prices. And it isn’t at all obvious that the _New York Times_ article doesn’t intend to imply a causal link, although that might just be their sloppy wording. Well, a fall has to be preceded by a rise, no? But yes, I said “rise” when I meant “fall”. I agree that at first read the NY Times article seems to imply a causal link, but it’s not said explicitly, and it’s _possible_ that the author didn’t imply a causal link. ---
**Author:** ![Gezellig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4af34b/32.png) [@Gezellig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gezellig)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/26 "2005-09-28T18:50:33Z")
> [@Rufus Xavier](#): > > I wonder how he tasted. Gouda? No, you’re not suppose to Edam. ---
**Author:** ![Pocahontas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecb155/32.png) [@Pocahontas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pocahontas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/27 "2005-09-30T00:29:06Z")
Why not use the Dutch experience to help out in the aftermath of Katrina? Their engineers could help us with the dikes and levees and the refugees could have one heck of a barbeque putting local politicians to a higher use than they have served so far. Pokey ---
**Author:** ![Sohist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@Sohist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sohist)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2005, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/28 "2005-10-04T14:59:47Z")
> [@Pocahontas](#): > > Why not use the Dutch experience to help out in the aftermath of Katrina? > > Their engineers could help us with the dikes and levees and the refugees could have one heck of a barbeque putting local politicians to a higher use than they have served so far. > > Pokey And theres no shortage of dykes in Amsterdam. Some of them are even married! ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2005, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/29 "2005-10-05T17:43:50Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > This took place during the Dutch Raadpensionaris Collection Mania Bubble of the 1670s. It was a wild and crazy time. A well respected raadpensionaris bought one day might sell for twice as much the next. Unfortunately, the owner of Johan de Witt left him sitting on a barrel in a warehouse. A visitor thought de Witt was an onion and cooked him with dinner. The owner was financially and emotionally devastated. Ah yes, the Madness of Krauts… ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2005, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/30 "2005-10-06T00:44:31Z")
> [@jrfranchi](#): > > I always though Canadians were American? I go out of my way to Stress USA or Canadians and use American to mean both. > > Which do you prefer? > American = USA > American = USA & Canada > American = Nafta > American = Entire Western hemisphere (The most appropriate and least used) But if ‘American’ doesn’t just mean ‘of the USA’, then what do we call ourselves? United Statesians? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/31 "2005-10-06T00:48:13Z")
> [@Spectre of Pithecanthropus](#): > > But if ‘American’ doesn’t just mean ‘of the USA’, then what do we call ourselves? United Statesians? I call us American and if I need to be specific I’ll use USA. Obviously this is a personnel peccadillo, I use to work for a USA & Canadian company and the Canadian were a little sensitive to American being co-opted by the people of the US. I guess this was an unfounded concern. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2005, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115/32 "2005-10-06T19:35:35Z")
> [@Spectre of Pithecanthropus](#): > > But if ‘American’ doesn’t just mean ‘of the USA’, then what do we call ourselves? United Statesians? Having grown up regularly speaking Spanglish, I often think of myself precisely that way: _estadounidense_. It actually rolls off the tongue quite well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiosyncrasies-of-the-dutch/323115.md?page=1)