"What Nationality (Ethnicity) Are You?"- Is this a pick-up line??

[laorbust61]

Originally Posted by Utopian Slums

I'm curious because i hear it a lot.

I used to think it was a New England snobbery thing. May sound odd to most, but i am one of the few with brown eyes in my area- most people have blue. So i always figure this was probably why i was always asked this.

But I recently went to Reno for 5 days and was asked this literally 6 times in 5 days. There was certainly more diversity there than New England so i was surprised to be asked so much. FYI- their guesses were never accurate and i was asked by all different races.

Pick up line? Small talk? Etc?

Any thoughts? (Besides the obligitaory "get over yourself" rude and insulting comments which usually makes me stay away from this subforum?)

Thanks!

It is usually a pick up line, and a painfully awkward one at that. Some guys who may want to meet you, have this... for lack of a better word, "hang-up" where they won't come out and tell you they are attracted and intrigued by you because you look exotic. They have to at least find you interesting-looking or pretty for them to even ask the question. I guess they don't want to "put themselves out there" too much in telling you that you are attractive. Maybe one too many women who turn rude when they are offered a compliment, but I think it's a sign of slight defensiveness when meeting women.

In some cultures it is considered poor form or bad manners to approach an individual this way, until you are better acquainted with them...then it is okay to inquire. But how many healthy normal (probably decent) guys read etiquette manuals. If "Mother" failed to instruct in this regard, this work is usually left to a man's significant other. Unfair, but often true.

[Adi from the Brunswicks]

Originally Posted by ElysianEagle

Most Indians are some mix of Aryan + Dravidian, but you'll almost never hear any of them mention it. I hope you don't go around introducing yourself that way, in an attempt to ingratiate yourself with white women?

Indian is nationality, not an ethnicity. As you may be aware, lots of ethnic groups coexist within India.

Technically, I'm Tamilian, but most tamils have genes which exhibit dravidian majority. Few are born with aryan majority genes and they are usually alienated and called "non tamils" even though we follow the same culture. Reasons for this lie in dirty Indian politics .

Hence the reason for my odd description.