American versus Usian

[McAvoy]

Recently I have been hearing and reading about a debate about what who and what is American. The debate is that anyone who lives in North or South America is considered American. Whereas the counterargument is thatcAmericans are the citizens of the USA.

Now I could understand anyone Canadian and South of America to call themselves American. I get it.

As in the same context as being European or African.

But there seems be a small push to start calling Americans Usians for some reason. It's small but consistent for some reason where I find it.

Now as someone from the US who has traveled to other countries, I am an American. The term American pretty much belongs to the US.

But there seems to be a push against it.

How do you feel?

[Draco Dracul]

United States is the kind of government, America is the name of the country. Also Usian would apply equally to Mexicans.

[ProfessorDetective]

I think most folks would use "US Citizen" over "Usian", if those were the only two options.

[clearspira]

Speaking as a Brit, when we say "American" we mean "USA". Anywhere else in the Americas are expressed by country name.

Usian will never catch on. My auto correct won't even let me use the word.

[Riedquat]

American is simply the correct demonym for someone or something from the USA, which, like most things in English, is simply a matter of common usage and acceptance. After all it's part of the country's name ("The United States of America.") So there's nothing at all wrong with that, even though America and American can also be used more generally to refer to the two continents. Words often have more than one meaning, or variable scope depending on circumstances.

Language often works like that, context and general acceptance and knowledge filling in the gaps so that every sentence doesn't have to be an hour long being needlessly, pedantically over-defined.

Other examples - European often gets used when talking about the EU even though the EU doesn't, and never has, included all of Europe. British is the demonyn for the UK even though that's not strictly 100% accurate either (and neither is the full name of the country - "The United Kingdom of Great Brtiain and Norther Ireland" would rule out every other island that's part of it).

[hammerofglass]

I believe Canada has been annoyed about that for a long time now.


youtu.be/29g57XTYgLE

Personally I'd be fine with just dropping it and using Yankees, but the folks down south would probably not appreciate that.

[Jonathan101]

The title made me think there was some sort of legal battle brewing between the US government and Usain Bolt.

[McAvoy]

Yeah. For some reason I have been seeing it more and more. Like a page asking what is one of your pet peeves and you always see a handful arguing Americans mean the continent as opposed the country.

I am 99% sure if you go anywhere in the world, and you say American, no matter the language barrier they will think about the country and not North America or South America. They are not going to think maybe you are Canadian or Brazilian but in fact American of the USA.

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

You have Latin America, French Caribbean, and Commonwealth colonies that divide up the Americas crudely. Canada is still commonwealth, but US got over it real quickly.

[McAvoy]

You have Latin America, French Caribbean, and Commonwealth colonies that divide up the Americas crudely. Canada is still commonwealth, but US got over it real quickly.

It's more from Latin America mixed in with some American citizens that are arguing about the whole America thing to begin with.

'We are all Americans!'.

'No you are Guatemalan.'

'I am from America, I am American'.