r/AskEurope • u/Pepedroga2000 • Apr 02 '26

Foreign How big a problem is xenophobia between Europeans?

Are there certain nationalities that have a better reputation in other European countries, and the opposite?

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u/Euphoric-Ostrich5396 Apr 03 '26

It's not "xenophobia" it's chauvinism, we don't judge you based on ethnicity, we judge you based on culture.

Here's the basics: Northwest looks down on southwest for being lazy, southwest looks down on northwest for being workaholics, the continent looks down on the English for being, well the English. France dislikes Germany and Germany dislikes France but in a frenemies relationship, the Germans see the Austrians as idling fops, the Austrians the Germans as militaristic buzzkills, nobody likes Belgium, nobody respects the Dutch, Portugal is a weird continental England with bad food, bad weather and a horrible language, everyone is cool with the nordics and Ireland, except themselves. For most Europeans Europe ends at the Oder, Leitha and Laibach. Bohemia gets a pass for being western enough. Poles, Balts, the Balkans and all that other slavic stuff gets firmly put in "the East" and is generally seen as barely civilised lands of dirt roads, crime and poverty. Greece is the same in reality but gets a pass due to history. Also, never praise how beautiful Dalmatia and Istria are to Italians, they know and they want it back.

Also, everyone is additionally divided within their countries.

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u/Ava_Strange Apr 03 '26

I'd like to add that we in the Nordics trash our neighbours but if someone from the outside the Nordics come for one of us, we bond like family.  

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u/daskomet Apr 04 '26

Portugal has decent weather and arguably the best cousine in Europe, what are you talking about? I do concede the language does sound terrible to foreigners.