"USians"

[Kraznaya]

I see this term as a descriptor for people from the United States of America occasionally from Europeans and other segments of the international community. Americans, from my experience, never use this term to describe themselves. While I find many American displays of patriotism nothing short of ridiculous, there is absolutely no reason to deny Americans of the term they chose for themselves.

The opposing argument argues that firstly, the word USians matches the term for Americans in their own language (Etats-Unis and all that). That's a ridiculous argument- I don't see Americans inventing a French word to describe the French.

The other argument is that it's a shaft to Latin America to call exclusively exclusively people from the United States "Americans." Sure, they can identify themselves as americanos in their Romance languages, but there is no need for the added confusion when there is absolutely no Latin American country named America.

Ridiculous term is ridiculous.

 

[Winner]

I see this term as a descriptor for people from the United States of America occasionally from Europeans and other segments of the international community. Americans, from my experience, never use this term to describe themselves. While I find many American displays of patriotism nothing short of ridiculous, there is absolutely no reason to deny Americans of the term they chose for themselves.

The opposing argument argues that firstly, the word USians matches the term for Americans in their own language (Etats-Unis and all that). That's a ridiculous argument- I don't see Americans inventing a French word to describe the French.

The other argument is that it's a shaft to Latin America to call exclusively exclusively people from the United States "Americans." Sure, they can identify themselves as americanos in their Romance languages, but there is no need for the added confusion when there is absolutely no Latin American country named America.

Ridiculous term is ridiculous.

Never heard of it. It would be impossible to pronounce in Czech (Usián? that sounds just silly). I'll stick to Američan and Amík

 

[Kraznaya]

That too! Not easy to say Anglicized either. I've seen it on these boards quite a few times though, along with "United Statesian."

 

[Winner]

That too! Not easy to say Anglicized either. I've seen it on these boards quite a few times though, along with "United Statesian."

I see no problem with "American." You don't say "Netherlander" instead of "Dutch" either, and this case is similar. The country is called the United States and it's citizens are Americans.

 

[Grisu]

I see this term as a descriptor for people from the United States of America occasionally from Europeans and other segments of the international community. Americans, from my experience, never use this term to describe themselves.

For 99% of the world's population, the golden age of travel never began. For USians, it will never end. As soon as Europe includes passenger planes in carbon taxing, it's over for you guys.

some USians do

I agree that it sounds ridiculous, though I also understand where it came from (not all Americans come from the US).

Most people around here (including me) use Americans, though for US citizens and the name of the country for other americans (mexicans, canadians, brazillians, etc).
Sometimes you also hear the term US Amercian. I guess that works too

 

[brennan]

IThe other argument is that it's a shaft to Latin America to call exclusively exclusively people from the United States "Americans." Sure, they can identify themselves as americanos in their Romance languages, but there is no need for the added confusion when there is absolutely no Latin American country named America.

No, but there are two continents full of Americans. So to call citizens of the United States 'Americans' is to cause confusion. Imagine the confusion if you were to start talking about 'Europeans' and it transpired you were only talking about the French. It's just lazy language really.

 

[Dachs]

No, but there are two continents full of Americans. So to call citizens of the United States 'Americans' is to cause confusion. Imagine the confusion if you were to start talking about 'Europeans' and it transpired you were only talking about the French. It's just lazy language really.

But France isn't called "The European Republic of France", it's called the "French Republic". The word "America" is in the US' name and that of no other country. What confusion?

 

[brennan]

What confusion?

Does the International Conference of American States refer to the US states? How about the Pan American Union? The Organisation of American States? Who is affected by the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man? If there is no confusion and 'American' refers to the USA, these are all relating to the USA only, correct?

Go to an IATRA meeting and who are the Americans in question?

 

[Kraznaya]

Does the International Conference of American States refer to the US states? How about the Pan American Union? The Organisation of American States? Who is affected by the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man? If there is no confusion and 'American' refers to the USA, these are all relating to the USA only, correct?

Go to an IATRA meeting and who are the Americans in question?

Good for you! You can type American into Wikipedia and go to the disambiguation page!

Now, how often do you hear these referenced in everyday speech or threads?

 

[brennan]

Given that this forum is top heavy with US citizens, rarely. That doesn't make it right.

If I ask 'Americans' a question, who might I be referring to? If the answer is unclear, your use of language is clumsy.

 

[Evie]

As Brennan summed up...

It should probably be added that, in much of Latin America (and French Quebec), "The Americas" are defined as a single continent - "America" stretching from the Cape Horn all the way to Canada.

In the perspective of many of those people, the American use of "Americans" as if they were the only Americans in the world is unbridled American arrogance and hubris - to think that they actually have a right to the name of our continent for themselves, and themselves alone. (And in the process, denying us inhabitants of America-the-continent the right to our proper name - like the people of Asia are Asians, the people of Europe are Europeans, the people of Africa Africans...but the people of America are not Americans because the most annoying country on the continent has decided they had a monopoly on that name.

The fact that said country has a bad tendency to treat the entire America/Americas as their own private playground, and any country within as their pet vassals, on whom it has rights of life and death, really doesn't help either - in that sort of condition, their hijacking of the continent name for their own country feel like more of the same <> imperialism.

Mind, personally, I tend to only use USians or United Statesians when I'm being whimsical or not very serious (ie, the same times I,m likely to use Canuckistan, Hockeyland and various other less-than-serious names for places) ; in serious discussion, I want to be understood, not to make a point about how ridiculously arrogant Americans are when it comes to naming themselves.

When talking French, though, "Étatsuniens" is far more commonly used, and I'm not shy about using it either.

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[Dachs]

but the people of America are not Americans because the most annoying country on the continent has decided they had a monopoly on that name.

When the United States became a country, not only was it the only independent country on either of the two American continents, but it had an existing framework for what is now Canada to join as well. That obviously changed, but because one country wins independence doesn't mean another has to change its name. Sounds like the Macedonia/Greece issue to me.

 

[brennan]

When the United States became a country, not only was it the only independent country on either of the two American continents

Riiiight, because the place was empty when the Europeans got there. What was that Odu Nobunaga was saying about arrogance?

 

[Evie]

No one said America had to change its name.

All I'm saying is, if Americans wanted people to not use alternate names for them, they should have come up with an original name, rather than just imagining nobody would have any objection to their using the name of the overall region/continent they only controled a narrow east coast strip thereof (back then).

As for Macedonia/Greece, the key difference is no one wants to embargo America until they change name or any other silly coercion/crybaby tactic.

We just have our own names for them and tell Americans to deal with it when THEY whine that we won't use the name they like.

Which typically gave the following sort of exchange :

USA : "We are Americans, hear us roar!"
Non-USA Americans : "Oh, look, a roaring Unitedstatesian!"
USA : "Hey, jackass, we're Americans, not Unit-whatever-ejad! Use the proper name, brat!"
NUA : "Well, see, we'd like to, but then we'd have no name for ourselves, so bug off!"
USA : "Name for yourself my...We were the first independant country in these parts, so we have the right to whatever name we want! Deal with it!"
NUA : "That's what we're doing. Unitedstatesians."
USA : "You know that's not what I meant!"
NUA : "Deal with it."
(Follow a lengthy sequence of perfectly childish namecalling, then...:
France : "Oh! I eez the France! The George Bush Ee haz grately offended uz! We call Americans, Unitedztatzians too!"

(Rinse and repeat the French part for any other country America has offended lately. IE, pretty much everybody)

 

[Tee Kay]

And I thought this thread was about Asian Americans.

 

[Kraznaya]

Riiiight, because the place was empty when the Europeans got there. What was that Odu Nobunaga was saying about arrogance?

I don't think the indigineous population called themselves Americans.

 

[brennan]

But they had countries, yes?

 

[Evie]

Well, how much they were countries in the modern sense vary from group to group. Certainly the Aztecs and Incans had something approximating countries ; you could certainly make a case for, say, the Iroquois as well.

The rest? Not so much.

 

[QuoVadisNation]

I always figured the term came about from cultural differences. In Europe, there are no citizens that like to exclusively coin the word "European" for themselves; everyone is European (except Turkey and sometimes Russia). So the US coining the term "American" for themselves becomes a potential subject for disagreement and the end butt of a joke at times whenever appropriate.

Anyway, I have said this a long time ago on these forums. There are two kinds of Americans (because of the two general cultures that each coined the word at almost the same darn time, being South American and United States American) - try and learn to deal with with it.

 

[Simple Simon]

I for one am often too lazy to write 'US Americans' or 'US citizens'. Simply calling them 'Americans' can be confusing, though - people from all the many other countries on the two continents can feel referred to. So why not 'USians'? it is short, precise, easily understood.