Zen10

I think their is a general conflation in some people's minds of "nationality", "citizenship", "ethnicity" and "heritage". They can be very different things.

optomisticgirl

I personally believe we as Americans say 'I'm Irish' or 'I'm British' to connect us with a country that is much older than our own. Compared to the rest of the world we are but a child. It's also due to the fact America was and is the great melting pot. To simply say I'm American, for me, only denotes were I was born, not were my heritage lies (although I do have Native American heritage).

Ultimately I think that's why it rubs some Brits wrong when they hear someone say 'He's Korean' when the person they are talking about was not born in Korea nor have they ever been there. The Brits are literal. If he was the child of a Korean immigrant than he would be Korean-American but not just Korean. However to us Americans we would view and even say he was Korean because for us it's not just about were you were born or were your citizenship lies, it's were your heritage comes from.

BubbleChog

Babychog is only 5 weeks old but I have already vetoed my Chinese American husband from talking to her in American (veto has not been totally successful) in the hope she will get a "cute" British accent at least until she starts school.

For me its quite important she gets a feel for her britishness as well as the chinese and american parts

Lx

jeffreyhy

How will "talking to her in American" result in her getting a British accent?

Regards, JEff

cindyabs

I believe she said NOT talking to her in American, which considering they are here in the US, might not be entirely under her control. Kids sometimes become "bilingual"- whatever the custom of the country is at school and then whatever keeps the peace at home.

SultanOfSwing

It's pretty much impossible to not expose a child to American accents, unless they are a complete shut-in anyway.

I've discovered that the exposure to the local accent, and to mine, has given my daughter an interesting, almost Canadian/UP Michigan accent because my inflections have made her more rhotic than the locals tend to be. Sometimes she sounds English as well, though. That's just from normal day to day talking with us at home, her daycare teachers and her wee friends.

Sadly, she has picked up a bit of Wisconsin 'whine' from somewhere as well

BubbleChog

My husband is bi-lingual Cantonese/american so I'm trying to get him to speak to her in canto so she learns canto and so that most of the English she hears is British English - at least to begin with. I'm aware I'm not going to "win" this one though

Lx

MostlyYank

Practice now - 'all yaalls, all yaalls'

Pete

cindyabs

I like the Wisconsin/Minnesoda accent! It's perky like Zydeco!

cindyabs

Pfft, I've been here in Ga for 20 years and I am sure the natives would laugh themselves silly if I said y'all.

SultanOfSwing

Now, I'll admit I've been guilty of giving you Yanks a hard time over your speech (in jest and in the spirit of fun, mostly) but I really can't stand that particular one

It's fine until it gets too nasal. But I dislike nasal speech in any accent.

I'll take a Wisconsin accent over a Chicago one any day though.

Pulaski

I use "y'all", it's just too useful a word not to, .... it's just that it comes out in a muted Sheffield/ south Yorkshire accent!

Gordon Barlow

We hear "y'all" quite a lot down here in Cayman, and use it from time to time ourselves. It's a useful word. "All y'all", not so much. A friend of mine in North Carolina told me once that the locals there use "you-uns" as the plural form.

Pulaski

Sounds like your friend might be a transplant from Pennsylvania, or perhaps his parents are. A colleague from PA, now hear in NC, introduced me to."you-uns", and told me that it ubiquitous in western Pennsylvania (and perhaps other areas?). In more than 10 years I've been living in NC, he is the only person I've heard use it.

jeffreyhy

So she did. So if her "Chinese-American" husband is not speaking American the child may pick up a Chinese accent?

My stepson, who immigrated at age 2-1/2 after he had been speaking his native language for a bit, has long since spoken perfect 'American' and sometimes frustrates his mother when he corrects her non-American pronunciation.

In an attempt to keep him bilingual she usually speaks to him in their native language. He can understand what she's saying, but he can reply only in English.

Regards, JEff