Which Anglophone country do you consider "most diverse"? (university, to live)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Fundamentally this is quite true, although of course like most aboriginal groups in the new world the Maori have undergone a high level of acculturation and assimilation that has seriously affected the viability of their culture and lifestyle.
Geography has a huge influence here, as New Zealand is actually a comparatively small and densely populated country. So Maori have been influenced much more than a lot of Aboriginal groups in more remote locations in Australia. In the Northern Territory, once you get outside Darwin a majority of the people you'll see on the street will often be semi-traditional indigenous, and at times you won't hear much English being spoken. I suspect its the same in remote parts of Canada.
On some of Australia's islands you'll also find quite distinct cultures. On Christmas Island most residents are either ethnic Chinese or Bahasa-Malay speaking.
LOL Of course we don't. Yours it as the federal (national) level and the one I'm talking about is at state (subnational) level.
Official bilingualism or de facto official bilingualism also exists at the provincial and municipal level in Canada in some places. It more or less works the same way as at the federal level. And where it is exists it is generally more comprehensive than the examples you've described.
Geography has a huge influence here, as New Zealand is actually a comparatively small and densely populated country. So Maori have been influenced much more than a lot of Aboriginal groups in more remote locations in Australia. In the Northern Territory, once you get outside Darwin a majority of the people you'll see on the street will often be semi-traditional indigenous, and at times you won't hear much English being spoken. I suspect its the same in remote parts of Canada.
On some of Australia's islands you'll also find quite distinct cultures. On Christmas Island most residents are either ethnic Chinese or Bahasa-Malay speaking.
This is true of Canada as well. Though there isn't a single aboriginal group in Canada that hasn't undergone a fairly high level of assimilation and acculturation. This is the case even of the Inuit which are the most isolated as you can imagine. In the far north there have been Europeans and European Canadians around for a very long time, and their ways have been influential and even "imposed" up there, even if they have not taken over completely.
Official bilingualism or de facto official bilingualism also exists at the provincial and municipal level in Canada in some places. It more or less works the same way as at the federal level. And where it is exists it is generally more comprehensive than the examples you've described.
One thing worth noting about the United States and the Spanish language is that the Spanish language could very well go the way of German and Italian in a few generations if current trends hold up. Mass immigration from Mexico is over, and recent studies have shown that current Spanish speakers are learning English at a faster rate than previous German and Italian immigrants learned English.
Which country is the most "international" in its mindset?
The US government and the American public are going to diverge here. The government is very much attune to what's happening around the globe, whereas the general public is not. Additionally only about 1/3 of Americans hold a passport. The American public is extremely inward looking.
One thing worth noting about the United States and the Spanish language is that the Spanish language could very well go the way of German and Italian in a few generations if current trends hold up. Mass immigration from Mexico is over, and recent studies have shown that current Spanish speakers are learning English at a faster rate than previous German and Italian immigrants learned English.
It will decline a good deal for sure. I'm not sure if it will ever completely die out. There are still French speakers in Louisiana; generations after immigration from France stopped. Another difference is that when German and Italians were immigrating here, there was a huge push to assimilate and abandon the old languages. Many Germans even anlicized their names; ("Meüller" became "Miller" for example). They also didn't have TV, newspapers and radio available to them at the same level. Ok, there wasn't any TV really to speak of but you get the idea. They could not get by using German or Italian only in certain areas the way Spanish speakers can today.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.