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It's a mixture. British roots can be traced to many places. Most people in the UK don't really think much about where they might be from before their ancestors came to what is now the UK.
Yep. I can understand Americans wanting to do it though and I don't think it's borne out of any kind of racism.
I would probably say Danes and Norwegians look the most similar, I think the Dutch kinda have a unique look going on and Germans look pretty different from the people of the Isles. Genetic charts show that Danes and Norwegians fall somewhere in between Celtic and English people and Swedes.
Also the fairer looking Spanish and Portuguese people definitely resemble the Welsh quite a bit. And would you say due to the Roman occupation, some Britons look somewhat Italian especially in the south, I have seen quite a few Brits with 'Roman' noses. Though I've heard the occupation had very little genetic imprint, it's kinda hard to imagine it having none whatsoever.
Sorry you got such short shrift on your question. I can see that you had a genuine interest in asking it. It's a very specialised question though and you'd probably need an anthropologist and probably historian, with an in depth knowledge on the subject to answer it for you.
Its true what the other posters are saying though, it's a subject people in the UK don't think twice about. People don't look at other people and wonder about their Genealogy / origin. British and Irish look to us, well.....British and Irish.
You sound like you already know a bit about history. You can derive a lot of information about physical characteristics from studying that. Basically most Brits are of Germanic descent from when the British Isles were invaded by the Angles, Saxons and Jutes. When England was under Roman control, not that many actual 'Romans' occupied the British Isles, but service people from other lands under Roman occupation were sent as well. The Romans never got as far as Ireland. I'm not sure Brits or Irish of Germanic descent have what you would call a 'look', probably what I would just describe as European.
This was all a long, long time ago though and a lot has happened since then and its now just one big melting pot. It's funny because my husband has traced his family tree back hundreds of years and his family are all from Britain as far back as you can go. But he has dark hair and eyes, olive skin and a sort or oriental look about him. Who knows where that comes from?
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobman
Considering the UK is an extremely diverse, multicultural country, we can be said to resemble pretty much any other ethnicity you care to choose.
Oh, and Hengist is right, in the UK, nobody really cares. Race or ethnicity are things which are rarely discussed, if ever.
I have to agree with this comment. I hardly ever thought about race (like Dragonborn, except from a historical perspective) until I moved to the US, where it seems to be all anyone ever talks about. Diversity this and diversity that. I'm sick of hearing about it. Americans look at you sideways when you tell them that nobody cares about it in the UK. I really think the UK is decades ahead in this respect.
I wasn't even talking about race, I was talking about physical appearance. I do think British Isles people have quite a distinct look, though there are several different sorts of 'looks' you encounter there. Also I am of Isles extraction even though I'm from the US.
I wasn't even talking about race, I was talking about physical appearance. I do think British Isles people have quite a distinct look, though there are several different sorts of 'looks' you encounter there. Also I am of Isles extraction even though I'm from the US.
I know, I understand you weren't talking about race. ('Race' being a pretty empty, biologically meaningless term anyway.)
Sorry but I don't think people from the British Isles have a 'look' unless you count they way they dress or style their hair. I've lived there for 43 years and stripped back, I'd find it hard to tell just by looking at someone if they were from England, France, Germany or the USA for that matter.
Americans only make themselves easy to tell apart from Brits because of the surgical enhancement and shiny white teeth.
Even if you take a distinctive feature such as red hair, you could take a stab that the person might be Scottish or Irish, but even then you would only be guessing because there are other Europeans that also have red hair.
You said yourself there are many different sorts of looks so how would you know?
There have been recent advances in Genetics however, which can tell you something about your geographical origins from your DNA. Now that I find pretty fascinating. Its like researching your family tree on a molecular level.
I know, I understand you weren't talking about race. ('Race' being a pretty empty, biologically meaningless term anyway.)
Sorry but I don't think people from the British Isles have a 'look' unless you count they way they dress or style their hair. I've lived there for 43 years and stripped back, I'd find it hard to tell just by looking at someone if they were from England, France, Germany or the USA for that matter.
Americans only make themselves easy to tell apart from Brits because of the surgical enhancement and shiny white teeth.
Even if you take a distinctive feature such as red hair, you could take a stab that the person might be Scottish or Irish, but even then you would only be guessing because there are other Europeans that also have red hair.
You said yourself there are many different sorts of looks so how would you know?
There have been recent advances in Genetics however, which can tell you something about your geographical origins from your DNA. Now that I find pretty fascinating. Its like researching your family tree on a molecular level.
Yeah I think it's like um, there are several different looks in England but there are a couple that look especially 'English', some English people don't look obviously English though, like Ellie Goulding could easily be from Denmark or something as an example.
Why start a thread if you don't want to hear the replies?
I lived in the USA and got used to the whole different European background thing.
We are really not interested in the genetic difference between a Dane, a Spaniard, and a Norwegian.
Just admit you got it wrong and move on.
Speak for yourself, but I know you're not the only person who lacks intellectual curiousity.
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