Re: CHAT: silly names, prepositions
| From: | Andreas Johansson <and_yo@...> |
|---|
| Date: | Thursday, March 22, 2001, 20:40 |
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I don't think anybody was even think about trying to force anyone anything.
However, I, and it seems like I'm not alone, find it somewhat ambiguious to
use "Americans" for "US citizens" since the word "Americans" looks like it
refers to (any) inhabitants of the Americas, and is indeed sometimes so
used.
Also, even tho' I'm not a native speaker, I do consider English to be "my"
language, and I have exactly the same right to call anything whatever I like
in it as I have in my native language or any other language. Now, this
doesn't mean I can't be flexible enough to refrain to call people things
they perceive as insults, but that's quite another matter.
Andreas
PS If I want a neutral and technical term for a citizen of the USA, I'll use
"US citizen". If you have a problem with that, go change the name of your
country! ;-)
Adam Walker wrote:
>Me too! There is one and ONLY one acceptable self-designation for citizens
>of the United States of AMERICA, and that is American. You may call us
>whatever you wish when speaking of us in French or German or Swahili or
>Russian or Spanish, but when speaking to us in English PLEASE have the
>courtesy to call us by our self-designation!!! Call me an estadoeunidienso
>(or whatever) in Spanish if you so desire (We call no one by their
>self-designations either.), but when speaking English call me an American.
>How incredibly arrogant to try to force another people to change their name
>for themselves!!!
>
>Adam Walker
>
>>From: Nik Taylor <fortytwo@...>
>>Reply-To: Constructed Languages List <CONLANG@...>
>>To: CONLANG@LISTSERV.BROWN.EDU
>>Subject: Re: CHAT: silly names, prepositions
>>Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 19:38:02 -0500
>>
>>Frank George Valoczy wrote:
>> > Hm...perhaps this may not be the most tactful thing, but a great deal
>>of
>> > the world already has a word for USAmericans, namely "Yankee"...
>>
>>Now *I*'m offended. I'm no Yankee, I'm a Southerner! :-)
>>
>>--
>>Cenedl heb iaith, cenedl heb galon
>>A nation without a language is a nation without a heart - Welsh proverb
>>ICQ: 18656696
>>AIM Screen-Name: NikTaylor42
>
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