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For parts of the US, Catholicism is dominant*, and without traveling to other regions, it'd be hard to know otherwise. Some public schools (including the one my mom went to, and some in eastern Massachusetts) cafeterias followed Catholic dietary restrictions in the meals they served on Fridays. Still even if Catholicism influenced some customs, the general culture was probably still closer to Northern Europe than Southern. Assimilation is strong enough, that immigration patterns didn't change the underlying culture hugely.
For Long Island, it's probably Catholicism, then Judaism, then Protestantism. We got Jewish holidays off from school.
The US is 25% Catholic. That is not a tiny minority. East coast cities had loads of Irish, Italian, Polish, and German Catholics. In my neighborhood it was about 75% Catholic. Many of these groups intermarried and certainly adapted different cultural aspects from each ethnicity. I know loads of Italian families and friends that when meeting kiss on the cheek. Not so much Irish and Germans. However, when they intermarry it all changes. You can go to a household named O'Reilly and they all act Italian due to intermarriage.
the south is known for being very warm and friendly. Where as the Pacific Northwest has a reputation for being reserved and at times introverted. People are generally quieter than in other parts of the country. The Northeast tends to be more boisterous and more "in your face" so to speak.
These are broad brush generalizations done to save time. In the south for example, New Orleans isn't like Atlanta. Now as far as how Latin things may be? Again depends on location. Southern California is decidedly more Latin due to the strong and prevalent Hispanic, predominantly, Mexican culture in the area. Very different from Louisiana which still has a Latin influence but is more French. Mardi Gras is like an American Carnival. Then as mentioned, there's Pennsylvania which has a stronger German influence. Minnesota has a noticeable Scandinavian influence to it. many East Coast cities have an Italian flavor.
What other places would you rank as friendly and warm-easy going people?
What other places would you rank as friendly and warm-easy going people?
California, and to some extent, Portland. I've found the people in Santa Barbara, California's central coast, and the Bay Area and points north up the coast to be friendly and outgoing. Overcrowding with hordes of transplants and techies may have changed that in the Bay Area, according to some people's observation, but if you get out into the rural areas of the north Bay counties, the people and the scenery are amazing!
I had a strange thought that entered my mind once, that American culture ( being a younger state) is an attempt to mimic Russia, because this combination of "Northern" and "Southern" traits is the essence of Russian culture, actually.
This is a tough question, because so much depends upon geography. Regional differences within the U.S. are quite pronounced. If you're in Miami or Los Angeles, well, duh... Latin culture in general and Latino culture specifically dominate.
In some other cities, like NYC and Chicago, there's a real melting pot that's hard to pin down... Italians, Jewish, Irish, Hispanics, Asians, and African-American and Afro-Caribbean residents have all had influences that are impossible to ignore... but who would dominate?
In the Midwest and the northern states, I'd say "Germanic" very loosely-speaking. Although, "Eastern European" might be just as applicable, since there are many people in the northern states with Polish, Scandinavian, etc. ancestry.
Historically the US has received much more immigration from Northern/Central Europe than from the Southern countries of the continent therefore the US is probably more Germanic, if anything. Latin Europeans exist in small pockets but have had the tendency to assimilate into mainstream America. The only significant "Latin" influence the US has comes from Latin American immigrants is only Latin in its own kind of way and is a whole different story.
The USA is nothing like Europe. Different food, different beliefs, different customs, different politics, different gender attitudes, different attitude to clothing, different beverages - can I go on?
White Americans who identify with Europeans have an inferiority complex about their own country. Europeans who think white Americans are "like them" because of superficial physical similarities are deluded and have clearly not met an American.
I agree with above poster. Any european country is more similar with any other european country than it is to the USA. The way society, work, cities, laws, personal communication, etc is understood in Europe is very different from that of the USA.
Maybe this thread can sound a bit stupid but I explain why I ask this question. It is more about personalities.
USA is supposed to have a "germanic culture" I write into commas because maybe cultures are mixed there, but I was thinking about the English heritage. I don't talk about features and people ethnics because I couldn't say "this person is American" just tooking at them lol.
Before travelling to USA for first time in 2011 I always expected that people (yeah, this thread is more about people) would be more like germanic Europe, I mean by personality, serious, colder, indoor people etc. I expected Americans to be more like British, Swedes, Irish etc.
But I was surprised that I found them more like latin european people: easygoing, warm, enjoying moments, and people who love enjoying moments without forgetting serious things of life of course, people like Italians, French, Spaniards Portuguese etc.
Later in 2011 I travelled to other State and I had the same feeling, yeah, people are more like us. I mean, I am from Spain and I find Americans to be more like me than British for example.
My question is for all these United Statians in the forum, especially the ones who have travelled to Europe or who know European people, Do you feel you have more similarities with North Europeans or with South Europeans??
European people who know Americans can vote of course.
People get upset when I say this but it depends on the demographic origins of the area of the USA you're talking about. People of German and Nordic backgrounds in the USA are more similar to those groups in Europe, same for English, Irish, Italians, Spanish, French, etc. I traveled all over the USA and plenty of Europe and this is my opinion. I travel to Spain today for 6 six weeks in southern Spain...I don't think anywhere in the USA is quite like Spain but you might some elements in New Orleans.
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