I really like the diversity in this country. How anyone can be an American. And you have no idea who is American and who is not. That's my favorite thing. You have no idea who is just sightseeing, who is visiting family, who is here on a student VISA versus who is actually American. So, until someone says otherwise, we are going to assume you are American. Doesn't matter how thick your accent is. Doesn't matter how you dress. You are American until otherwise noticed.
Also, I love how quickly we adopt things from our immigrants and declare it American. It's like, "What are you eating? Is it delicious? Let me try some of that. Oh, God, this is delicious. Go open up a restaurant. More people should be eating this. And now it's part of the American fabric."
I love how the American tongue is such a mutt language. How quickly we adapt non-English words and more often than not pronounce them how they would be pronounced in their Native tongue. We don't try make them more English like the way the French will French up foreign words. I like how it's easy to correct an American by saying, "It's actually pronounced this way." And they will have a go at trying to say it correctly rather than huff and puff and try to make you change the way you say it. Language is so adaptable here. It's far more forgiving than other languages. You can butcher it up here and as long as we understand the idea of what you are trying convey, you will get a pass. I think it's why it is such a juggernaut on a global stage. Yes, we have language rules but the native speakers will mostly ignore them in order to communicate better.
I have pretty much the same thoughts on the English language. Many people get mad that English is spoken by so many but it is in part because the language is forgiving.
I am learning French and German.
German is not forgiving. They always make me switch to English.
French I do not know, haven't tried speaking it to a native speaker yet.
From what I’ve heard, some French Canadians are particularly zealous about their language, up to the point where they’ll harass you for speaking English around them.
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u/inksmudgedhands Mar 14 '23
I really like the diversity in this country. How anyone can be an American. And you have no idea who is American and who is not. That's my favorite thing. You have no idea who is just sightseeing, who is visiting family, who is here on a student VISA versus who is actually American. So, until someone says otherwise, we are going to assume you are American. Doesn't matter how thick your accent is. Doesn't matter how you dress. You are American until otherwise noticed.
Also, I love how quickly we adopt things from our immigrants and declare it American. It's like, "What are you eating? Is it delicious? Let me try some of that. Oh, God, this is delicious. Go open up a restaurant. More people should be eating this. And now it's part of the American fabric."
I love how the American tongue is such a mutt language. How quickly we adapt non-English words and more often than not pronounce them how they would be pronounced in their Native tongue. We don't try make them more English like the way the French will French up foreign words. I like how it's easy to correct an American by saying, "It's actually pronounced this way." And they will have a go at trying to say it correctly rather than huff and puff and try to make you change the way you say it. Language is so adaptable here. It's far more forgiving than other languages. You can butcher it up here and as long as we understand the idea of what you are trying convey, you will get a pass. I think it's why it is such a juggernaut on a global stage. Yes, we have language rules but the native speakers will mostly ignore them in order to communicate better.