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The dominant culture of the U.S. is derived from northwestern Europe - especially the U.K., France and Germany. Unmistakable similarities exist between the U.S. and those countries.
I would go so far as to say there is an unspoken allegiance by a lot of Americans towards the British royals.
The OP is already so infested with old stereotypes, I don't know if this thread is gonna be something at all.
What on earth is 'Germanic Europe'? Is it everything north of the Alps?
If I wanted to be rude, I'd say that the Americans are more like Northern Europeans, as they actually like to work, take responsibility and keep their promises, unlike Spaniards and Portuguese...
And the OP is infested with old stereotypes... yes yes
The U.S. predates a large percentage of European countries. The Declaration of independence was signed almost 100 years before the unifications of Germany and Italy. The U.S. was almost set in it's current borders when the Austrian, Ottoman, and Russian Empires were still fighting over how to divide eastern Europe. The whole Germanic/Latin European cultural division is a relatively new and exaggerated idea. People throughout Europe lived generally the same lifestyles up until the industrial revolution which happened after the US came into being.
I say all this to make an argument that what is thought of as European cultural influence on the US is very much overstated. Colonists from England and France brought over their systems of government and over time and largely independent from Europe, they developed into what's in place today. The same thing happened culturally.
The dominant culture of the U.S. is derived from northwestern Europe - especially the U.K., France and Germany. Unmistakable similarities exist between the U.S. and those countries.
I would go so far as to say there is an unspoken allegiance by a lot of Americans towards the British royals.
A perverse fascination maybe, but an "unspoken allegiance?"
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.
Everyone is mixed up in the U.S now. Most "white" Americans have at least some Native American heritage, and some have even African heritage. Even those who are "purely" of European stock are a mishmash of British, French, Scottish, Irish, Scandinavian, German, Spanish, Italian and Russian heritage. That's also why white Americans look different from Europeans and also rather indistinct from other white Americans (in a good way). In Europe, French people have a distinctive appearance, as do Germans, Russians, Brits and Italians. Their populations are relatively more inbred. For an even more extreme example of a small genetic bottleneck, look at white South Africans. They really look very...ahem...distinctive.
I say all this to make an argument that what is thought of as European cultural influence on the US is very much overstated. Colonists from England and France brought over their systems of government and over time and largely independent from Europe, they developed into what's in place today. The same thing happened culturally.
Precisely. In addition, European societies themselves have evolved from what they were 200-300 years ago. I would say that the similarities between the U.S and Europe today are due to American influence on modern European culture rather than the reverse.
Everyone is mixed up in the U.S now. Most "white" Americans have at least some Native American heritage, and some have even African heritage. Even those who are "purely" of European stock are a mishmash of British, French, Scottish, Irish, Scandinavian, German, Spanish, Italian and Russian heritage. That's also why white Americans look different from Europeans and also rather indistinct from other white Americans (in a good way). In Europe, French people have a distinctive appearance, as do Germans, Russians, Brits and Italians. Their populations are relatively more inbred. For an even more extreme example of a small genetic bottleneck, look at white South Africans. They really look very...ahem...distinctive.
Sorry to break it to you, but most white Americans do not have African American heritage and even less have Native American. There have been DNA studies done on this.
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