What's your ethnicity?

[blueandwhite]

I hope that answered your question ;-)

I think you did.

My views are a bit different.

For me, a person is really defined by where they live and in turn, by what they contribute to their community. An Australian living in Belgium isn't any more or less Belgian than a Englishman living in Belgium. The fact that the Englishman is European and the Australian isn't really relevant. Both individuals are simply there. Heck, both of those immigrants may contribute far more to Belgian society than many citizens who have lived all of their lives there. Ultimately, the only thing worth measuring is the contributions we make to the community around us.

Being Canadian simply means that I live in and contribute to this country, just as you being European means you live in and contribute to European society. In turn, I am bound by the laws and orders that regulate this land and you are governed by a similar set of rules in your nation. I recognize that these may be artificial constructs but I don't really feel that I can draw a distinction between a continental division and a national one. Heck, in a federal state like Canada we are further sub-divided into provinces. Our identity is very much defined by the rules and regulations which we are subjected to, even if they are artificial.

[Opproperaar]

I wouldn't say I'm completely defined by the community I live in. I've always preferred living on the edge of society, to take a step backwards and observe rather than get involved. As such I've never felt part of a community, not because I wasn't accepted but simply because I choose to observe from a distance.

But that is completely personal, while I don't feel like a Flemish person (and there's a lot to do around being Flemish in Belgian when you hear the far right parties riling the people up) there are many who do. In such a context living on the edge of society has it advantages. It allows to observe more unbiased than if you'd be in the middle of all the action.

Anyway, I abide by the rules of the community I live in. I've never done anything to be born here. A stroke of luck, that's it. Nobody chooses where to live and I got lucky. I just abide by these rules because I live here, that's all.

Of course on the surface such rules do affect you in some way. Arguably you could say I'm in favor of letting people drink from ages 16 and up because that's the Belgian drinking age. Even so I'd rather say it's because I think in a rational, liberal way than because of that law. For example I live here and still find many laws in this country retarded which aren't so abroad.

To make a long story short, in what way, and how deeply a community and its rules affect you is deeply personal. Society does affect me, but for a large part I attribute my thinking to who I am and my character, not society. For you it might be different but I feel my theory, or rather stance, is generaly supported by the fact that one society, with the same rules for all, produces many different kinds of people. One is a fascist, one a liberal, another deeply religious and some socialist. Others are opportunistic and selfish while again others are caring and loving.

If society influenced us all in the same way it could hardly be that we differ so much from one another. Something other than community plays a large role which is personality, IMHO.

Edited April 5, 2008 by Hairy Ruben

[Kahgarak]

25% Belgian, 75% Dutch, baby!!!!

[Kogyik]

50% German, 25% Greek,20% Irish, 5% Cherokee = 100% American

[Majek]

100% Polish and I’m proud of it.

[-JD-]

50% Indian, 50% English. My mum's side in Indian and my dad's English.

Greetings,

JD

[Skinny Boy]

100% Irish, and proud to be proud of it. I mean, who wouldn't want to live in a country that was the Top Rank in the Quality of Life Index in 2005?

Cool topic BTW

[Ricecracker]

75% Canadian, 25% Romanian

Edited March 27, 2009 by Ricecracker

[Capn Frank]

25% Polish, 25% German,

err... ...and the rest is a mix of Dutch, English, Irish, maybe French, and i don't know what else.

Guess that makes me 100% Dork!

[Natman8000]

50% English, 50% American, 100% Israeli (in a few years)

[Aliencat]

100% alien

[Adam]

I'm 99.9% Italian and .1% Egyptian. My father is 99.8% Italian and .2% Egyptian (My grandmother had a grandfather who had a great great great great grandfather who had a great grandmother that was a full 4% Egyptian - don't these facts bore you?) and my mother is 100% Italian.

Guess that makes me 100% Dork!

It makes you 100% pickle.

[Lego12]

I'm 50% american, 35% Spanish, although I don't look Spanish at all, 10% Austrian, and 5% German.

Edited March 27, 2009 by Lego12

[Eilif]

According to the US government, my ethnicity is "White non-Hispanic"

My ancestry however is:

51% Danish (Dad is 100% and "Eilif" is my Danish middle name)

the other 49% Is a mix of Chezch and English, with some of Irish and Polish and perhaps a few others.

The Danish is the only part I've ever had much interest in, mostly because my Dad's homogeneous family is much more interested in cultural history/tradition than my Mom's side.

You all have made some interesting points about how we define ourselves. Our ancestry has more effect on some of us than on others but it's true that the culture/society we are raised in has much more to do with who we are.

Even those who would like to think of ourselves as "separate from" the societies/cultures/sub-cultures that spawned us are inevitably shaped to some degree ways by those groups. A good sociologist could take the most "fringe" individual from a given society and demonstrate clear traits, mores, values, etc. that they have adopted from the society/culture that reared them.

Edited March 27, 2009 by Eilif

[Legoist]

100% human.

[Guss]

I don't even know what was the nationality of my ancestor... I know that there is an italian.. so maybe I'm 90% french, 10% italian.. I don't know.. but what is sure is that I'm 100% afol !

According to the US government, my ethnicity is "White non-Hispanic"

your government can tell you your ethnicity ?

[Eilif]

your government can tell you your ethnicity ?

I'm pretty sure that your government can tell you yours as well.

The term ethnicity is used in a couple different ways. Wikipedia actually has a pretty good breakdown of how it can be used. The US Government uses it as along with "race" as a way of loosely defining a persons ancestry and origins. In their usage, the "white" ethnicity is broken into two groups hispanic, and non-hispanic.

[Peppermint_M]

White Welsh. Thats what we tick on the census.

[Izzy]

England Ireland Scotland Wales, inside, outside, puppy dogs tails.

My great great great grandparents on my Dad's side were sent to Australia from Ireland for stealing! and on my Mum's side they are German.

[m'kheyl]

@Eilif, I'm not sure about Switzerland but in France there's no ethnic data except the place of birth that may give away part of one's origins

As for me I'm half French and half Arab (that's my better half )

[Rijkvv]

I'm 100% Dutch.

[KimT]

I am fairly sure that if I (or anyone for that sake) were to look into it, I'd be a mix of almost anything.

But since I am born and live in Denmark, I guess I'm 100% Danish... not that I believe such a marking to be true or even state something about who or what I am...

Oddly Americans seem to take great pleasure in their ethnicity, is that because your country is sooooo young and you're not sure where you belong? Wouldn't your ethnicity be 100% American?

Hey wait...maybe I am just plain 100% European? -Yeah, I think so or even just 100% human.

[Eilif]

@Eilif, I'm not sure about Switzerland but in France there's no ethnic data except the place of birth that may give away part of one's origins

As for me I'm half French and half Arab (that's my better half )

You're right about France, largely as a result of the holocaust, if I'm not mistaken. I've heard there are some folks in France trying to get the government to begin collecting ethnic data again. Is that true?

I am fairly sure that if I (or anyone for that sake) were to look into it, I'd be a mix of almost anything.

But since I am born and live in Denmark, I guess I'm 100% Danish... not that I believe such a marking to be true or even state something about who or what I am...

Oddly Americans seem to take great pleasure in their ethnicity, is that because your country is sooooo young and you're not sure where you belong? Wouldn't your ethnicity be 100% American?

Hey wait...maybe I am just plain 100% European? -Yeah, I think so or even just 100% human.

Yep, Americans are pretty interested in thier ancestry. Even though we're the "melting pot" lots of folks still want to maintain some connection with their past. Especially since most of the average American's family has probably been "American" for less than 150 years. Of course you're right about not being sure, in that most Americans only know what country their family came to America from, they often have no knowledge of what countries they may have come from in even the 100 or so years before that.

Human is not an ethnicity. It's common parlance for species: "homo sapien". Ethnicity is a subset of humans usually by nationality, "race", linguistics, culture, etc.

[prateek]

brown power

100% indian

[CloneMe]

25% Australian 25% Canadian 50% Unknown (Bunch of places in Europe I think)