So, where was I when I was in your country?

[Kolesar]

What I mean is that I don't know the proper name for your country. Let me elaborate. If I told somebody I was traveling to the United Kingdom, I would get a funny look. Americans usually say "England", but is that what people who live in London call their country? For all I know, you call it Britain. Along the same line of questioning, I wonder if you prefer to be called British or English.

Just to make it fun, there are people who live in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. I am aware that more political power has been shifted to those regions, so I expect that they are more likely to identify themselves thusly as a matter of cultural pride.

So what is it?

[Dorian Gray]

1. Having lived there for two years...

I would say if you are traveling to London or anywhere else in England, you are going to England. If you go to Scotland or Wales, the same. Northern Ireland, Jersey, Man... the same. Each has its own identity.

Asking someone if they are British is not as offensive. My friends from Northern Ireland don't mind being called British, but they have dual passports, also carrying an Irish passport. But, I tend to call people as they are: Irish, English, Scottish, and Welsh. I may call the English and Welsh.... British.... but that's only when generalizing about something.

[non sociopath skin]

2. The official name is ...

... The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Can I just point out that I don't get funny looks in the UK when I say I'm going to the USA, nor are they confused when I then tell them that I'm going to the state of New York ... or Kentucky ... or Florida in the USA.

So where's the problem?

The Skin

[Taxloss]

4. I've met people who get confused about the NY city/NY state

distinction. A good friend of mine thought the city covered the ENTIRE state.

Plus people who say things like "but Canada is, basically, America, isn't it?"

[moggie]

6. That sort of thing happens in the US too!

Ask a resident of New Mexico how many times they've experienced other Americans thinking they're foreign. And then there's the whole Washington thing, which seems to confuse many Americans.

[non sociopath skin]

9. Yes, to the NYC City/State thing ...

... Mrs. Skin says when two New Yorkers who haven't met before get talking, the first question is "City or State"?

But, to be honest, I've never met anyone who didn't think that the US and Canada were two very different countries.

The Skin

[Anarcho-Socialist]

11. "...but Canada is, basically, America, isn't it?"

Unfortunately I've heard that comment several times from other Brits. :crazy:

[moggie]

8. I recall a thread elsewhere on DU

It was one of those "the repugs are so much more stoopid than us" threads, and the subject of American ignorance of world geography came up. One person said (I'm paraphrasing) "haha, I told a friend I was travelling to England, and she didn't know it's an island!". I pointed out that it's not, and from the response to my comment I learned that such ignorance is apparently only inexcusable if you're not a Democrat.

[Taxloss]

3. "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" is the name.

The UK name applies to the whole country. "Britain" applies to the island of Britain and British is the word applied to those who live there - the English, Scottish and Welsh (and Cornish). But many people on adjacent islands identify as British - Loyalist NIers, the Manx, the Channel Islanders, Shetlanders and so on, while protecting their own autonomy.

Manx and the Channel Islands are not technically part of the UK - they have special status (I suppose analogous to Puerto Rico but very different).

If describing the country, say the United Kingdom. If describing the people, say British. No one will be offended that way.

Do NOT use "English" as a general term. You will irk the other parts of the country. If you wanted to draw a specific distinction between the different nations of Britain, be careful - it's not, for instance, Scottish as opposed to British, it's Scottish as opposed to English.

Yes, it is a fiddly system, but we fought for close to 2000 years to settle on something we can all agree on and I think this is it.

[D-Notice]

5. How about

"United Kingdomish"? :P

[moggie]

7. I prefer to be called British

Or European. Not that there's anything wrong with being English, but unfortunately the people I've encountered who make a point of calling themselves English rather than British tend to be on the far right (ironically, often supporters of the British National Party).

The country's proper name? Airstrip One.

[mr blur]

10. Well, on my passport, it says,

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and inside it says, British Citizen. I always think of myself as British although I'm from the England bit. Actually, I think of myself as European, but that's another can of worms...

[Guy_Montag]

12. Plenty of English people use English when they mean British,

even my friends in conversation with me (despite my Scottish accent) will do it, & then I feel like an anal Scottish nationalist saying something like "Don't you mean British".

[Kolesar]

13. Thank you for your comments, everybody

You had such interesting comments from angles I had never imagined.