In the interest of clarity, from now on, we will call citizens of these Unites States as “Vespuccians”.
This is a hot topic for me, especially since I took a spanish class a few years ago (which I promply dropped because the Mexican teacher was a bigot!).
Day one, she went around the room asking everyone what their nationality was. That is how she started the class. Others had answered American, just like I did, but I guess I was the only white male so she decided to try and belittle me. Big mistake! She didn’t know what to say after I was done with her.
When I replied, “I am an American”. She yelled “WRONG! America is a continent, not a country. You Americans are so arrogant claiming to own the continent”.
Then I asked, “Miss, what is your first name?”
“Maria” she said. “No, your name is now Looloo” I stated confidently.
She started to get annoyed. “Are you trying to disrespect me in my own classroom sir?” she asked. “How dare you tell me what my name is! I decide what my name is, not you!” She declared.
I smiled. This is too easy. “Well MARIA, why do you presume to tell me what my nationality is? If I tell you that I am American, why do you say otherwise? Who is disrepsecting who?”
This is not the first time I have got into this argument with a latino. Wont be the last either now that American world power is wanning. Now that the lion has grown weak, the jackals are circling and taking cheap shots at Americans. It is all out of spite, hate, pettyness, and envy.
Even if she was correct about the technicals of language, which she is not, it would still be wrong to call Americans “Estadounidense”.
You see, there is no single continent on the globe called America. There is a North America, there is a South America, but no single continent called America.
But wait, you say some people consider both north and south collectively ‘America’. I would tell you those people are using it incorrectly. Just because they are connected does not make them a single America. Just like Europe, Asia, and Africa are connected that does not make them a single continent. You see, there is a little something called history and tradition which seperates them.
One could use the plural form, The Americas, to refer to both north and south America. But how the hell would anyone confuse that with American? They would not unless they were being deliberately obtuse or willfully ignorant!
It has been tradition since the earliest days to call people from the British colonies (which later became the United states) American. We refer to ourselves as American, not “Estadounidense”.
So why the hell do people from latin America deliberately try to disrespect us? I had the same arguement when I visited Meixico with someone in a bar in Acapulco. They insisted that I refer to myself as “Estadounidense”. Why are they doing this?
I understand, they feel disrespected by Americans. Americans can be heavy handed and arrogant. But you know what, doing the same does not make things better between us.
It really is about respect. Call people what they want to be called. Don’t presume to tell them what they are.
That’s interesting. I have a friend who grew up behind the iron curtain (she always says Slovenia, but naturally part of Yugoslavia at the time) who insist they were taught the North and South Americas were a single continent. This has become something of a running joke among our friends, teasing her that as far as we’re concerned India, Asia, and Europe are all one continent, and Africa is just a peninsula.
Obviously, it is a hot topic if you have to revive a thread that has been inactive for nearly three years just to rant on personal experiences.
(And i will point out that Europe and Asia are, geographically and geologically, a single continent, although fighting over that issue is not really worth the effort, either.)
Just like when the Ukraine stopped being a region in Europe and started being an independent nation, it dropped the definite article, the continents are called “the Americas” and the country is called “America”.
If you find that weird, this will blow your mind: Columbus never came near the District of Columbia, and George Washington never stepped foot in the state of Washington. Places aren’t named logically.
Nickkelly, you were wrong. You’re being pigheaded and provincial. In Spanish, all of North and South America is one continent, “América.” And it should be that way, it’s a different language.
Could you please chill a bit? I enjoyed reading his story. Actually, it would not hurt this website if opinions were more colored with personal experiences.
I thought they called themselves 'murcans. At least that’s what it sounds like. 
Alternatives that I could think of would be “Number-one-ers” or “Greatesters” or (this is probably the best one…) “FREEDOMERS!!!111”
It’s REALLY hard to come up with an alternative… 