What country people thing you are from

[Anna C. 4]

People ask me if I was from Europe, and when they here my name they think I am Swedish (my real name is the Swedish version of Anna), somehow they often think I am Scandinavian. I can lie hours in the sun and still won't get tanned. So they probably think I am from a super-Northern country without any warm days or something...

[amal 4]

My husband gets mistaken for Mexican all the time! Mexicans mistake him for Mexican too. They don't believe him when he tells them he's from Jordan. Here lately I guess the ppl have gotten smarter coz instead of guessing...they just say..hey, what nationality are you OR what is your country of origin. That has been nice.

(hehe I love the telemarketers who can't say either my first or last name...then are so surprised wheni have perfect english..hehehe)

[dani_christine 0]

most often, anthony finds that people ask him what part of canada he's from.

i honestly can't tell if his accent if his accent is fading somewhat, or if my ears have just gotten so accustomed to it that i don't really hear it any longer.

although, one time this summer...we went to Sonic for dinner. he ordered a foot-long coney with no cheese. instead, he received a regular foot long coney and an iced tea.

to this day, when he introduces himself to people, he'll say "anthony" (AHn-thon-ee) and everyone says "what?" and looks at me for interpretation. then i have to say it in the american way..."aaaanthony" for them to understand it.

the worst of all, though...you would never believe how many people have told him that his english is really good. what language do they speak in Ireland, anyway?

*shakes head*

[LaL 418]

oh dani that reminded me of something... drive thru's are abysmal.... and spoken auto-attendants with my husband's accent (even though it is slight)

[dani_christine 0]

he'll still avoid using the telephone at all costs, if he can talk me into it.

[Mags 112]

the worst of all, though...you would never believe how many people have told him that his english is really good. what language do they speak in Ireland, anyway?

*shakes head*

Er...Irish.

[dani_christine 0]

the worst of all, though...you would never believe how many people have told him that his english is really good. what language do they speak in Ireland, anyway?

*shakes head*

Er...Irish.

yeah, well...*some* people do speak Irish (or, as we call it in America, "Gaelic")...but it's an archaic language...there are apparently some people on the west coast of Ireland that still speak Irish as their first language...but not so much in Armagh, where he's from.

what can i say? we americans are dumb.

would you believe he actually had to take an English as a Second Language test before they'd let him enroll in college classes last year??

[Mags 112]

the worst of all, though...you would never believe how many people have told him that his english is really good. what language do they speak in Ireland, anyway?

*shakes head*

Er...Irish.

yeah, well...*some* people do speak Irish (or, as we call it in America, "Gaelic")...but it's an archaic language...there are apparently some people on the west coast of Ireland that still speak Irish as their first language...but not so much in Armagh, where he's from.

what can i say? we americans are dumb.

would you believe he actually had to take an English as a Second Language test before they'd let him enroll in college classes last year??

Yeah I know, I think it is places like Co Clare and the like where they are pretty secular. Don't even speak English in some areas.

Can't believe he had to sit a test though!

[dani_christine 0]

needless to say, he passed!

as he was going in, i was teasing him, though...and reminded him that we don't use all those superfluous e's and u's in american english. somehow, i thought that was funnier than he did.

[kim&james 0]

I often have to shake my head for 2 reasons... first, are you from England.... answer, no Im from New Zealand.... second, where is that?....*head shake*

[Jas&Pat 0]

I'm ethnic chinese from Singapore but I've never been recognised as chinese in the U.S or Canada! I've been asked if I was Japanese, Korean, Native American, American, Canadian and... wait for it.. ESKIMO. *blinks* Most of the time, people don't think I'm asian at all though. Got into an argument with the school clinic nurse when she asked me where I was from. She kept insisting that I was native american even though I said I wasn't and err.. not even a drop of native american blood in my family. Even when I go to chinatown and speak chinese to them, people just stare at me and are kinda shocked that I can actually speak to them in their own language. Either that or they just continue talking to me in english anyway.

Its all fun though, most people in my own country think I'm a tourist too. lol.

would you believe he actually had to take an English as a Second Language test before they'd let him enroll in college classes last year??

*shakes head*

lol. I'm from Singapore where the first language is english and I had to do that too! Its kinda dumb considering I didn't need a toefl(sp?) and yet they want an ESL test.

[LiszyandKenny 5]

unbelievable but they think I am from England....

[JaJo 1]

Last time I was in the US, before I spoke most people would take me for a mexican (or some other latin country, but never Brazil), when I did, they kept saying "Funny...you don't look like a canadian...". I guess I had a canadian accent back then. A friend of mine said I use some unusual expressions. I guess that's what happens when you begin to learn british english, learn a lot more of it in Canada and continue your education listening to american songs and movies.

BTW, people took J. for a german and even brazilian(!) when he was down here.

Edited December 4, 2006 by JaJo

[Reynaldo 0]

Last time I was in the US, before I spoke most people would take me for a mexican (or some other latin country, but never Brazil), when I did, they kept saying "Funny...you don't look like a canadian...". I guess I had a canadian accent back then. A friend of mine said I use some unusual expressions. I guess that's what happens when you begin to learn british english, learn a lot more of it in Canada and continue your education listening to american songs and movies.

BTW, people took J. for a german and even brazilian(!) when he was down here.

I don't know about there, but here in Brazil people call me German, Russian, Dutch...

[Nikita2Charles 32]

Here in the Sillicon valley we have a large indian community but it's not a problem, but when we are in NY, most people takes my wife for Guyanese, Trinidadian, due to the large indian population in those carribean countries that have setttle in NYC.