I was in school in the 60s and 70s. We learned that there are SEVEN continents: Europe, Asia, Africa, Austraila, North America, South America and Antarctica.
I’ve never heard Canadians resent Americans using the term. I have heard many Latinos try to make an issue of it but never giving a satisfactory alternative to the name. Usually calling us Norte Americanos which would seem to include Canadians, they usually won’t include Mexicans in the group however so it seems to be grouping Americans and Canadians as a single ethnicity.
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
That’s what I learned in the 80s and 90s.
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
Not that either the USA or Canada could be considered a single ethnicity individually, but does it make much difference to a Mexican?
Residents of the Republic Of Ireland or the Isle Of Man might dislike that.
Admittedly we’re talking 70s but I remember at times being referred to as a “VS-Amerikaner” for the German Vereinigte Staaten. But that could have been more a student/regional thing.
Vespuccians? 
And there’s always “United Statians” (if someone hasn’t already mentioned it, I have only skimmed some of the posts).
I would vote for “Yankees” (“Yanquis”) in spanish, and renaming the country “Yankeeland” (“Yanquilandia”), that’s how we colloquially refer to y’all here in Argentina.
I’m sure it would be particularly well received south of the Mason-Dixon line…
Yes and Mexicans and Argentinians have separate cultures but we still call them all Latinos.
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
That’s weird. The Yankees haven’t played baseball since 1973.
ETA: except those eleven seasons when they played WS games in the NL parks.
My cousin uses “Yanks”.
Hey! Progress! Thirty years ago a “Yankee” in that area was someone who still had an outhouse!
I’ve seen “sepo” used, as short for “septic tank.”
You could actually acknowledge their arguments, which I think are reasonable:
The fault lies not with the person using the term “American” to mean “not anyone from the Americas outside our polity,” but with the history and implications of the term.
This is almost certainly wrong as among the actual users of that slang, terms are used and changed or abandoned quickly.
There’s even a term for this “Mockney” , as in Cockney Rhyming Slang used by outsiders.
As a few others have pointed out, non-academics (non-pedantics?) have incorrectly (not ‘unjustly’ because justice has nothing to do with it) bundled everyone from Texas to the north pole as “American” due to historical artifacts of western European colonizaton. Note that the former colonies declared independence and called themselves the United States well before Canada was recognized as a separate entity.
I jokingly refer to the USA as “the colonies” or those guys “across the pond” depending on who I’m talking to; sometimes “mainland” or even “the States” but none of those references roll off the tongue like a good unique and accurate name would.
Then again, non-academics also tend to inaccurately refer to all people whose ancestry came from Mexico, Central America, or South America as “latino” or “Hispanic” or even “Mexican” largely because they are unwilling or unable to bother making finer distinctions. Those who do care enough will make the effort to express that distinction – Allan is Honduran and married to a [Los] Angelina whose grandparents were Nicaraguan and Chilean but met while marching with Cesar Chavez in the Farm Worker movements.
And then there is the tendency to dismiss all of the descendants of American slaves, as well as immigrants from the slaves’ ancestors’ homelands as “Black” or “colored” or “Negro” or worse without making the effort to distinguish Eritrean, Rwandan, or Jamaican from Nigerian.
One could call these generally-accepted hasty generalizations.
Or not.
The alternative is to be more courteous and mindful, make a greater effort, and correctly distinguish the nuances of geography and culture.
In foreign countries I’ve identified myself as “Californian” because I know there’s only one California and it’s well-enough known that my audience will understand where it is and all the cultural/social/political/technological/financial/whatever-al baggage that is thereby implied.
At which point they nod, roll their eyes, and find someone else to talk to. :dubious:
—G!
This.
Additionally, it helps to keep in mind that of all the many countries that occupy North and South America, the United States of America is the only one that has the word “America” in its official name.
God bless Vespuciland, land that I love…
People from the United States of America are called Americans, because there’s not another word in the name that works. People from the United States of Mexico are called Mexicans, because there’s not another part of their name that works. The people from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic were called Soviets because there is no other part of their name that works. (Though a lot of people stuck with the previous name “Russians” for historical reasons, even though that technically only meant people from the largest part of the USSR).
I have no problem calling us America, either, as a shortening of the full name. The continents are North America and South America, and together called “The Americas,” not “America.” Just like there is no Carolina, just “The Carolinas.” (Though I do admit the fact that the North American continent is divided into North America and Central America is confusing.)
So we could try to come up with other names. Yank(ee)s doesn’t work since it has different meanings in the U.S. USians or USers make an okay abbreviation, but have no real way to pronounce them, and are clearly some sort of acronym. Gringo is diminuitive (as was Yankee, originally). Norteamericano is even less specific. There’s just not another choice.
The cultures are so different that an all-inclusive form of Americans doesn’t even make sense. An “American” from South America has as much in common with a USian as they do a European. Europe tries to kinda have a blend of cultures, so it works to have “Europeans.” Asian countries are very different, and so “Asians” is just used as a racial word for people in the eastern portion. Australia is both a country and a continent, but even New Zealanders brusque at being called Australians.
There just isn’t any compelling reason to even have a demonym for someone who lives in one of the American continents.
You must not get around much Rick Kitchen. I’ve been called a “Yank” in countries all around the globe for decades. Never bothered me a bit because it was always said in a non-offensive, matter of fact way. Guess you had to be there.
Mostly but not always. Unless you mean to say that “People from the USA* should be *called Americans.” In which case i agree.