kimilseung

When in your opinion will people have been there long enough, not to use the hyphenated self-identification?

Most UK residents can not trace their origins to Angle mud huts, Roman villas, Viking long-ships; The Celts are long gone, the Picts even more so, driven west and north or absorbed in to wave after wave of immigrants.

Many, of us, like myself, can trace our family arrival in the UK to a few generations ago, but I never use the hyphen.

Will it be a thousand years, a few more hundred or is it here to stay. I do not expect you to know, but as someone from a culture were the hyphen is used you may be able to provide a little more light on this, as it is something that most of us Brits find hard to really understand.

another bloody yank

I've seen this question come up since I joined BE. At first I did try to explain. I'm now of the opinion that it's one of those differences that people from other places cannot understand. It's beyond your comprehesion. I've come to recognize it as one of those things that makes the US unique and I value it.

At the same time, when I'm feeling slightly more cynical, I think it might be one of those things that people from elsewhere do not want to understand. It's just too good of a joke to ruin.

kimilseung

Yes you are probably partly right on both counts.

Though I have a feeling that there is an optimal mass of immigrants/time in country tipping point some where. British Pakistanis and Indians are not chastised if they refer to their ethnic origin (unless you are Tebbit). So it is not completely alien to us.

dakota44

I agree that it is something difficult for others to understand. The truth is most Italian Americans are likely similar to me, only two or three generations removed from the old country. Two in my case. We are a very young country by European standards. While most Brits may not be able to trace their British roots back as far as you say, most can trace them a lot further back than most Americans can trace their American roots. Remember that at the time of the Revolutionary War the population was more than 80% British and much of the remainder were slaves. The rest of the ethnicities did not begin to show up in strength until long after, during the heyday of Ellis Island which began somewhere around 1892 or 3. It is estimated that 1/3 of all Americans come from ancestors that arrived at Ellis Island, and that in no way includes all those who arrived later. And how many more have arrived since then? So, most of us still have a curiosity and attachment to our historical roots. It's just the way it is. I, for one, have always been fascinated by the possibility that my ancestors lived in what is now Italy during the Roman Empire.

So, in answer to your question: I suppose that when the U.S. is a few hundred years older, if it survives, it might change.

kimilseung

It is when it comes to my nephew.

He has a mother whose grandparent came from Ireland, but being American-Irish does not have enough street cred for him, so he has researched Irish history (more than he ever has done for school) and he discovered the 'Black Irish', he has decide that he must be descended from Basque survivors of the Armada washed up on the Irish coast. He thinks this makes him Latino. I tried to explain to him that in the words of Alaves football club, supporters "We are not Spanish we are Basque". That being Basque and claiming Latino status just because the Basque country overlaps some Spanish lands, is not necessarily in the spirit of things.

kimilseung

So I wonder, You do not hear American-Anglo very much, is it something long standing in the Anglo culture, or because the Brits have been in America for longer or is it something partly political, other elasticities want to differentiate themselves from the dominant or longer established culture? It could be the arrogance of power or entitlement (We have been reminded of something similar with the speech from Bernstein, at FIFA talking about "The F.A." seems it rubs others up the wrong way because he does not say "English F.A.")

dakota44

I think it is quite likely because Brits have been here since before the Revolution, some tracing back to the Mayflower. But who knows for sure.

Thydney

For me it's not the x/American y/American it's when the tell you they are x or y when plainly it's not true. Like when they pretend to pronounce something in a foreign way like parmesan. I actually remember being told the French don't say Bleu they actually say blue. Or like the 'Fat Bastard' wine they used to sell to be told it's an old English compliment.

cindyabs

cindyabs

Methinks you're right. On the one hand, we are decried as being a young country with "no history" and on the other, if we try to link back to prior history from our forebearers' homeland, we are mocked as well. We are unique in so much blending of so many nationalities.

Thydney

The phrase is mongrel Cindy

another bloody yank

It's like I constantly tell my kids Thyd. In the course of your life, you will meet many, many stupid people. As you get older, you will learn to recognize them very quickly by what comes out of their mouths. Prepare yourself.

Captain Cheesestick

I'll be going for citizenship soon. Presumably I'll be English-American then? My daughter was born in Bristol but is just American. My son was born here and for some weird reason his grandparents keep calling him "Welch."

SultanOfSwing

Given that you were actually born in England you'd have good cause to use that term. Personally I still refer to myself as just 'British' though force of habit

Funny thing is, if I'm ever lucky enough and we move to the UK, and my wife takes up Brit citizenship, I bet she continues to refer to herself as simply 'American' and not 'American-British' which, frankly would sound a bit silly.

My son though, American born and bred, would probably switch to British, he wants to live there so badly, bless him

Jerseygirl

My husband's grandparents were from Ireland but he never refers to himself as Irish/English. I suppose now he is a USC he should say he's Irish...like many of the people here with Irish ancestry do.