People of Britain and Ireland, do you consider yourself European?

Yes lol.

 

Nope. Even our newspapers etc refer to Europe as being like another place when they talk about it, otherwise they would just call it...here. Anyway, I know we ARE part of Europe on paper, legally speaking etc but in general no it doesn't feel that way.

 

Why is it that places so culturally different such as Norway and Spain can be lumped together as Europeans, but the British feel they have exemption from the classification when basically everything Britain is derived linguistically, culturally, and historically from Europe?

Sure, Britain isn't continental, but it's still European and in Europe in the same way Scandinavia and Finland are. I find it odd that the British press insist that they're a world apart from it all.

 

Well I don't make the rules but being classed as European does nothing to change the culture of the country in question. Let's not forget Britain has had a massive impact on what is now Europe (and pretty much everywhere else) so it's not as if they're taking liberties unjustly. I say "they" because I class myself as Scottish and not British. Not because I'm being difficult, but I wasn't consulted when the union was formed and I don't support it. Anyway, we won't be in the EU much longer if we get our way. Either Scotland goes independent and we're out, or the British government holds the referendum on it in 2017 and we're out.

 

Either way, Switzerland and Norway are Europe, regardless of EU membership. Also, France and Germany also have had massive impact, but that doesn't exclude them from being European simply because of that (I don't really get what you were trying to say there)

It's not that Britain and its constituent countries have to remain in the EU, it's that Britain shouldn't special-snowflake itself by claiming non-European status. Geographically, culturally, linguistically, Britain is European, and I don't see why some British run away from that and believe it's reasonable.

 

Yes, I do. Britain is culturally and linguistically European. It's very similar to the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark more than the US, Canada or Australia. Northern French cities like Lille share more in common with the UK than, say, Toronto. I visited the Toronto suburb of Scarborough a few years ago, and it isn't anything like here. Everything is more sprawled, more car-orientated, bigger houses - very similar to the US.

Scandinavians refer to Europe in the same way we do though, because they are more geographically isolated. Finland, Sweden and Norway border Russia only, and they have to go through Denmark to get to the rest of continental Europe by road. If anything, Scandinavia is more isolated than we are - it's really no hassle at all to get from here to France or the Netherlands - a quick flight, or by Eurostar, or by ferry.

 

Yes, much more so than british.

 

Funny how you guys are justifying why your country is part of a continent or not. I imagine this happenin' in Asia---what if Iranians, Afghans or even the Indians don't want to call themselves Asians anymore because of how Westerners think about the "stereotypical" Asian (If you're from the West, you might call the West Asians as "Middle Easterners" and might think that the East Asians are the only "Asians"). So what about the other regions?

British people are Europeans, Canadians are Americans, just as Saudi Arabians, Georgians, and even some Russians ('coz I am not really sure if only part of Russia is in Asia, I don't really know the agreement) are Asians---you just have to deal with it.


P.S. Please Europe, even though most parts of Russia are in Asia (geographically) please take them away from us. We already have China, North Korea, Iran, and Saudi Arabia for all the crazy happenings in our continent.

 

Yes, the british and their government seem to think they are capable of sawing themselves of the european continental place and drifting off into the atlantic. They may well vote on whether to attempt this in 2017.

 

Like with Australia?

 

Well, what people call themselves is entirely up to them. A British person is European whether they think so or not, but that doesn't mean they have to identify as European. Most people in the UK don't consider themselves British first - they consider themselves English first, or Scottish first. Many don't consider themselves British at all. They're still British though.

 

I always thought the word Europe brings out bad vibes today - the massive crisis - Greece, Spain etc. situation, then there is entire eastern Europe which doesn't sound appealing at all.

Do British people mind less being called Western European than European in general?

 

It depends on whether people want to consider Oceania an isolated part of Asia or a separate region in its own right. But it does get pretty arbitrary; where does Asia stop in that case?

That said, the same logic could be used to call Europe merely an Asian subcontinent like India. After all, the decision to separate Europe is pretty arbitrary (hence Eurasia)

 

I consider myself to be a European, but not a good one.

I feel ashamed that I know only just enough French or German to order a meal or buy a train ticket but not quite enough to be be absolutely certain which it is I'm doing. As soon as people hear me mangling their language they slip seamlessly into fluent English and leave me feeling ashamed (but relieved). A lesser man would hate them for it!

 

I often get weird looks when i call people from saudi arabia asian. It's crazy how most people think asians are just the chinese, koreans, japanese and all those who look very similar to them

 

Yes I do. I'm a very proud European and big supporter of the European Union (for all it's faults). I'm an unashamed federalist and have no problem with the loss of nationhood or sovereignty. For me, the idea of a common foreign and defence policy is very attractive indeed.

I can't stand the Little Englander mentality that taints our dealings with our nearest neighbours and I think David Cameron is playing with fire with his idea of an in/out referendum in 2017. We don't need one. The British press and media certainly cannot be trusted to report on this issue without bias or prejudice and it could lead to utter chaos.

I'm praying for a Conservative defeat in next years election to ensure no such referendum takes place and I truly hope the Labour Party will not sneak the same idea into their manifesto. God help us, if the Tories win and this crazy referendum takes place.

 

I think everyone appreciates that UK is part of the continent of Europe, just that people make a distinction for continental Europe. I think our relationship with continental Europe in terms of identity is similar to that in Scandinavia and Iceland. Also that people use Europe as synonymous with EU it makes some people uncomfortable identifying as European.

So yeah, I don't think it's a case of people not understanding geography, more to do with national/regional identity, which is much more complex. For example we have a Scotsman here who doesn't identify as British despite living in the area of Britain.

Conservative majority next year is unlikely so I don't think we'll see this 2017 referendum, and even if we did I'd think people would vote to remain in the EU. Scottish independence is unlikely to succeed also, and even if it did Salmond would take Scotland back into the EU anyway. So yes, I think the UK will be in the EU for a while longer at least.

Cameron's proposed referendum is useful for him as a bargaining chip in the EU, though it's not as credible as it would be if anyone was confident he could deliver it with a Con majority. Either way, the very real threat of UK withdrawal does help DC's case for EU reform and anti federalism. Certainly it means that the EU can't carry on towards federalism and keep the UK with it.

 

No. Most everybody I have spoken to refer to the rest of Europe (excluding the UK, and not sure about Ireland) simply as 'Europe', as if we are not part of it. As far as I'm concerned, we're not European, just part of a country in Europe.

---------- Post added 7th Jul 2014 at 02:03 PM ----------

Although, when someone says American it almost always means someone from the US, not someone from the Americas. America is not your continent, North America is. It's like asking a Canadian whether they're North American - are you?

 

I actually think a referendum is a good idea - it will but this Eurosceptic nonsense to bed once and for all. The overwhelming majority of British people vote for pro-EU parties, which includes the Conservative Party (David Cameron is a pro-EU leader - don't be fooled into thinking otherwise).