The Off Topic Topic

[HVC]

Americans are obsessed with either being Irish, Scottish, or native American.

Sad we are not obsessed over being Portuguese?

Bad example since HVC is mostly moorish. 

Half jewish at least, baby

Half-jewish, half-moorish? My bad. 

Like most porkchops

"Porkchops"? In the South yes, definitively. 

Well technically my family is costal central, which I guess is south from the perspective of your northern hometown

[garbon]

It is not distinct to us at all. Well ok maybe the way the Mormons do it is pretty distinct.

Where else is it also prevalent, in your observation?

Europe. After all the #1 genealogy show is from the UK. And it is not like it is a huge thing for Americans, I am not sure why people think it is prevalent. Cal and I are the only ones really into it on here and the only reason I am is because I like history.

I think it might only be because a lot of Americans will rattle off some other ancestries. I will say that many Brits I've encountered are also quite forthcoming about their roots.

I'm caring a little about genealogy (don't care about genetics) as I'm interested in family stories and I was given that photocopy of that book about one branch of my ancestors.

[Valmy]

I'm caring a little about genealogy (don't care about genetics) as I'm interested in family stories and I was given that photocopy of that book about one branch of my ancestors.

Genealogy was, until very recently, entirely a historical inquiry and had nothing to do with genetics.

[Duque de Bragança]

Well technically my family is costal central, which I guess is south from the perspective of your northern hometown

South of Coimbra/Mondego: SOUTH! MOORS! 

[CountDeMoney]

It is not distinct to us at all. Well ok maybe the way the Mormons do it is pretty distinct.

Where else is it also prevalent, in your observation?

Europe. After all the #1 genealogy show is from the UK. And it is not like it is a huge thing for Americans, I am not sure why people think it is prevalent. Cal and I are the only ones really into it on here and the only reason I am is because I like history.

It's a racial identity thing, for both good and bad reasons.

[Zanza]

That's some impressive growth over the last few years. The manufacturing renaissance in the West will be purely capital-based and not require workers - neither in the West, nor in developing nations...

[Jacob]

Europe. After all the #1 genealogy show is from the UK. And it is not like it is a huge thing for Americans, I am not sure why people think it is prevalent. Cal and I are the only ones really into it on here and the only reason I am is because I like history.

I think non-Americans think it's prevalent because many of us have had the experience of having people tell us their ancestry upon learning our nationality. This is not, in my experience at least, prevalent in Europe.

F. ex. I've crossed a lot of borders. The only time I've had a border guard tell me they were Danish too (or rather, one or more of their ancestors) has been on crossing into the US.

Didn't know that the #1 genealogy show is from the UK... didn't even know there was such a thing as a genealogy show, to be honest

But you know, thinking about it I'm inclined to agree that non-Americans are likely as interested in geneaology as Americans. Certainly, there are a few people in my family who've painstakingly collected (and distributed) the family tree in great detail. Maybe the perceived difference is that I don't think anyone in the family would think to discuss it with anyone outside of the family, while many Americans seem to consider it a good topic for casual conversation and relevant to a number of topics. So perhaps it's not so much the amount of interest that varies, but rather minor cultural differences in where and how the topic is discussed.

[Valmy]

Being an immigrant nation will do that. BB might mention he is Ukrainian if ever met somebody from Ukraine in a conversation I bet.

There is no more reason for a Dane to tell people of his Danish ancestry then there is for me to mention my American ancestry. It is rather obvious.

[Barrister]

Being an immigrant nation will do that. BB might mention he is Ukrainian if ever met somebody from Ukraine in a conversation I bet.

There is no more reason for a Dane to tell people of his Danish ancestry then there is for me to mention my American ancestry. It is rather obvious.

Once upon a time I would have (even picked up a Ukrainian-from-Ukraine girlfriend for a few years in undergrad).  I think I now know Europeans could care less about such things.

[Zanza]

As far as I know all my ancestors for several generations were German farmers and craftsmen. There were a couple of East Prussians among them, so maybe there are some Poles or Lithuanians among my distant ancestors. So genealogy based on genetics just doesn't seem very interesting.

[derspiess]

That's some impressive growth over the last few years. The manufacturing renaissance in the West will be purely capital-based and not require workers - neither in the West, nor in developing nations...

I bet Japan is ashamed it has a robot gap with Singapore and South Korea.

[grumbler]

Stop using "alternative medicine" and "scientifically" in the same sentence.  They are mutually exclusive terms.

- signed,
   The opponents of every single medical advance since the leech

[CountDeMoney]

Stop using "alternative medicine" and "scientifically" in the same sentence.  They are mutually exclusive terms.

- signed,
   The opponents of every single medical advance since the leech

Can't hear you, my rhino scrotum soufflé is ready, what with this head cold and all.

IT'S GOT A CRISPING SLEEVE

[Razgovory]

Being an immigrant nation will do that. BB might mention he is Ukrainian if ever met somebody from Ukraine in a conversation I bet.

There is no more reason for a Dane to tell people of his Danish ancestry then there is for me to mention my American ancestry. It is rather obvious.

I think for most Americans, after three generation they don't have a clue.  I was surprised when I found out I had Italian family members.  Since I keep getting ads on facebook to "celebrate my Israeli heritage" and stuff about Passover, I'm a little frightened to check my DNA.  I don't want to get my face kicked in for being an agent of the Zionist occupied government.

I'll admit the Jewish religion has always made sense to me.  If you are going to have one God, have one God.  Why does he need to be three at once?

[garbon]

Stop using "alternative medicine" and "scientifically" in the same sentence.  They are mutually exclusive terms.

- signed,
   The opponents of every single medical advance since the leech