Is "yanks" an offensive title

[dragonaxe]

Just a quick couple of questions for our American cousins...

If you were called a Yank, would you feel offended?

and what term do you prefer: America, US, USA? (is there a difference that's not clear to us Brits)?

 

[HoosierDaddy]

'Yank' is not offensive to me...but is not a common term over here..unless pertaining to our civil war(meaning Yankee). Wonder how it came to be that (mainly) Brits use that word for US or American citizens? Perhaps a reference to when we were considered a British colony...I suppose.
HD

( I guess it did come from a British song ridiculing early American soldier's kinda ragtag form of dress or uniform). Since we went on to defeat the larger powers of the day..Yankee Doodle Dandy seems to mean very little..especially today.
What does it mean to you?

 

[dragonaxe]

no idea why that seems to be.

I've got to say though...I LOVE your profile name!!!! sooo clever :eusa_clap

 

[bumphrey hogart]

I think it's one of those terms that has a degree of affectionate rivalry in it. I wouldn't be offended by being called a limey by an American or a pom by an Australian,as I said I think these terms are essentially affectionate.

 

[LizzieMaine]

The Americans most likely to find it offensive are Southerners and New England baseball fans.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

no idea why that seems to be.

I've got to say though...I LOVE your profile name!!!! sooo clever :eusa_clap

..Don't know about clever...
Folks from Indiana are called Hoosiers...and I am a Daddy.
HD

 

[dragonaxe]

..Don't know about clever...
Folks from Indiana are called Hoosiers...and I am a Daddy.
HD

Have never heard of that...why Hoosiers?

 

[dragonaxe]

The Americans most likely to find it offensive are Southerners and New England baseball fans.

I'm a RedSox fan....is that worse than being a Limey? lol

 

[HoosierDaddy]

The Americans most likely to find it offensive are Southerners and New England baseball fans.

 

[Dan'l]

"Yank" is fine, but be careful using that term in certain parts of our southern states. As HoosierDaddy pointed out, Yankees and Rebels were at odds during our CW.
Most of us refer/think of ourselves as American. However, I've been told that some in Canada and Mexico also prefer to be called Americans since it is indeed North America.

Cheers,

Dan'l

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Have never heard of that...why Hoosiers?

Hoosier (pronounced /ˈhuːʒər/) is the official demonym for a resident of the U.S. State of Indiana. Although residents of most U.S. states typically adopt a derivative of the state name, e.g., Indianan or Indianian, natives of Indiana rarely use these demonyms. The State of Indiana adopted the nickname "Hoosier State" more than 150 years ago.[1] "Hoosiers" is also the nickname for the Indiana University athletic teams. The word Hoosier is sometimes used in the names of Indiana-based businesses and organizations. In the Indiana High School Athletic Association, seven active athletic conferences and one disbanded conference have the word Hoosier in their names.

Frontier banter
This idea suggests the term was a greeting. When approaching a man's home in those early frontier days, you shouted from afar, "Hello, the cabin!" to avoid being shot. The inhabitants would then shout back "Who'sh 'ere?" (who's here). Soon the words became slurred together , and the country folk came to be called Hoosiers.

 

[Miss sofia]

'Yank' is not offensive to me...but is not a common term over here..unless pertaining to our civil war(meaning Yankee). Wonder how it came to be that (mainly) Brits use that word for US or American citizens? Perhaps a reference to when we were considered a British colony...I suppose.
HD

( I guess it did come from a British song ridiculing early American soldier's kinda ragtag form of dress or uniform). Since we went on to defeat the larger powers of the day..Yankee Doodle Dandy seems to mean very little..especially today.
What does it mean to you?

It seems to me that it is an affectionate term for us Brits, my grandparents generation, seemed to call Americans "Yanks" quite a bit. I think it was a common colloquialism for us brits when referring to American servicemen during the war and it seems to have stuck around.

Interesting thread.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I'm a RedSox fan....is that worse than being a Limey? lol

It's a lot better than being a Yankee!

 

[dragonaxe]

I tend to think Yank as being slightly derogatory. I'm sure it was originally meant as affectionate, but more often than not it seems to be linked to a complaint about Americans, like the "over paid, over sexed, and over here" WW2 comments.

But maybe I'm just too British, and worried about hurting anyones feelings

 

[Miss sofia]

I tend to think Yank as being slightly derogatory. I'm sure it was originally meant as affectionate, but more often than not it seems to be linked to a complaint about Americans, like the "over paid, over sexed, and over here" WW2 comments.

But maybe I'm just too British, and worried about hurting anyones feelings

It was definately originally meant as affectionate by the english gals during the war . I think your right and there was probably a derogatory element to it too, living on our little island we have always been somewhat wary of incoming Johnny Foreigner!

 

[HoosierDaddy]

I tend to think Yank as being slightly derogatory. I'm sure it was originally meant as affectionate, but more often than not it seems to be linked to a complaint about Americans, like the "over paid, over sexed, and over here" WW2 comments.

But maybe I'm just too British, and worried about hurting anyones feelings

I don't know about too British...
...but I never felt comfortable calling someone from Britain a 'Limey'...so I just refrain from using that term.
However..I once called a British exchange student(high school)..'English'...and they became very upset. I was referring to their accent...and never understood just why they took offence.

 

[dragonaxe]

I don't know about too British...
...but I never felt comfortable calling someone from Britain a 'Limey'...so I just refrain from using that term.
However..I once called a British exchange student(high school)..'English'...and they became very upset. I was referring to their accent...and never understood just why they took offence.

Yeah, that's a whole new kettle of fish! lol. It all depends what nationality he/she was.

The UK is a conglomeration (my big word for the day!) of English, Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Irish countries. But there are strong rivalries between each of those individuals.

For example..I'm Welsh, so would rather die than be thought of as English! :rage: and when watching rugby, would always prefer to be beaten by Scotland or Ireland, before England (actually being beaten is something I'm coming to terms with now lol)

It's all good fun, and there's no point getting too upset....there's far more pressing problems in the world to deal with!

 

[JimWagner]

I'm sure if you look hard enough you can find someone taking offense at just about anything. Especially these days.

The term "Yank" doesn't bother me personally at all.

 

[Shangas]

Regardless of actual internal geographic location (North, east, west, south, midwest, deep south, New England, West Coast, East Coast, etc), any American from the USA is to me...a Yank. Always has been, always will be, and will always be what I will call them.

The idea that the term 'Yank' might be offensive honestly never crossed my mind.

 

[Gromulus]

Been called much worse!

I'm sure if you look hard enough you can find someone taking offense at just about anything. Especially these days.

The term "Yank" doesn't bother me personally at all.

Same here. My dad served in WWII and I remember when I was young he occasionally used the terms "limey", "frog", "kraut", etc. when referring to other nationalities. I assume other members of his generation used the same terms without meaning any offense - just part of their times and culture. We are of Italian descent and for some reason he didn't mind being called a "dago" but hated the term "wop" (supposedly derived from "without papers" during immigration). My in-laws refer to me as being "Eyetalian"!

I agree that the world has gone too far in being "politically correct" and we have more important concerns than worrying about a few colloquialisms.

I have not had the opportuniity to visit the UK but it is high on my list (as is Australia, Italy, and so many other countries). On a related note last year I was fortunate to visit Germany on business and spent some time in the towns and villages around Frankfurt. What a gorgeous and friendly country.

Just 2c from another "yank".