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I'm like you! My ancestors are such a mix of different European and they came over here so long ago! I definitely can't say "Oh, I'm 1/4 this and 1/8 that." If someone asks, I'm just all "Uh, I'm a mutt." I GUESS I'm French Canadian, whatever that means, but really I just consider myself straight up American, just like you!

To me, being American is my citizenship and nationality. My ethnicity is something else.

@Mrs. Pen: haha I haven't thought it out that far, but I like @Looch: 's answer!

I call myself a Black American. Even though my Dad was born in another country I don't identify with that country. My dad is from Guyana and his great grandfather was from India and great grandmother from a West African country. My mom's side has been here's since slavery and there is some French on her side. My connection to Africa, India, and France is something far off and other wordly to me.

I was born here. I'm American. If pressed I will tell my mom and dad's lineage but I don't feel resigned calling myself American because that's what I am.

@Mrs. Pen: I am probably not the right person to respond to this, because I don't really identify with my ethnicity. Both my parents were born and raised in Europe and only came to the US as adults. I was born in the US, so I say I am American, when people ask me where I am from, I say Connecticut. I don't really identify with being Italian or even Italian-American, for that matter. If anything, I distance myself from it because of all of the stereotypes.

@spaniellove: I'm not a fan of hyphenating American for some, but not all in the case of what you described either: white = American.

@looch: That's how I see it, too. I am American by citizenship. I am Irish and German by heritage. When I travel and people ask where I'm from, I either say Philadelphia or I say the US.

@Mrs. Pen: Funny story, we get asked if we're Canadian ALL. THE. TIME.

@Mrs. Pen: No you didn't at all. In my first response I didn't include my race and use a hyphen because more so than anything else I think I am culturally American.

I have never realized just how American I am until I lived abroad. Back in the States, I associated myself with my ethnic heritage. I'm Filipino American, I'm Asian, I'm Filipino. But after living in a country with very few Americans, my ethnic heritage is almost second to my nationality. For example, there are quite a few Asians from "the old county" here, but when it comes down to it, it's awfully hard to connect with them. Aside from the food and knowing where my grandparents were from, we don't have too many things in common. I have more in common with someone that was brought up with the same values, in the same county, even if it's a different coast!

There are also idiosyncrasies that are purely American that are only obvious when you're surrounded by people not raised in the States. A lot of these things I never even realized I did, for instance, switching the fork and knife when eating. Here people eat holding both, as in the whole time! Slippers with jeans is also (apparently) very American. I know other countries do similar things, but here in Europe, it's how to spot an American 101.

So my answer is yes, I am definitely American and it means a lot more to me than just my nationality.

I think this is an interesting question. And begs the questions, can American be considered an ethnicity? I think in theory it can by definition of what ethnicity is: The fact or state of belonging to a social group that has a common national or cultural tradition.

It shouldn't matter your race. American = white is the problem though. So I guess we would have to move past the notion that if you're American you're white. My ancestors came to america a long time ago. I know some where from Ireland, England, Sweden, but I don't say those are my ethnicity because I don't identify with any of those b/c my family has been here for so long. So that leaves me with no ethnicity I guess besides to say that I'm American.

I thought this essay was interesting:
http://serenityhome.wordpress.com/2010/10/04/is-there-an-american-ethnicity/

SO my husband is an American (by citizenship), but when asked he'll say Sri Lankan---and let's be honest, when people ask him that question, that's what they want to hear from the brown guy with an accent. They don't want to know his current citizenship, they want to know his country of origin. Anyway, mentally he identifies as a Sri Lankan, because he lived there till he was 20.

When I'm asked, I say "American"...well, depending on the country. In Europe countries, I say American. In central and south america, it's better to say the word they use in that country, like estadounidense or yanqui (hehe), or gabacho, or gringo. But I usually just say where I'm from.

Anyway, I think generally when people ask that question, they want to know your country of origin, not your race. My husband's "race" isn't Sri Lankan, that's his country of origin. But that's what people want to know when they ask. When I travel to other countries, people don't want to hear (oh, I'm 1/16 irish, 1/8 german, blah blah), they just want to know where I'm coming from RIGHT NOW.

For the record, most of my american born friends of non-Caucasian ancestries also say "american" when asked in foreign countries. A good example of this was a trip where I went to Greece. I was hanging out with a girl from NYC and another girl from Texas for a few days.

Local greek people kept asking us where we were from, and we'd all say we're American. But then the lcoals would look at them and be like...no really, where are you from. Because one girl was east asian and the other was indian, but both 3rd generation American. They would both just say, "American", again.

@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: I think it's just a time issue. In a couple more generations, people from all over the world will realize that anyone can be any race and any nationality. There's an African-ancestry Italian judge. She's Italian, even though I'm sure she doesn't fit most people expectations of an "Italian". She's more Italian than all the Americans that say they are Italian.
One of my best girl friends is Taiwanese-American. She would just say she's American. Even SHE once said something like...."It freaks me out to hear Asians from Australia or England...like I think, That's not the right accent for you!" And meanwhile, I'm sure Asians from those countries are saying the same thing about her.

It's just time and awareness...

@sloaneandpuffy: I hear this a lot, since I grew up in Texas and we have a biiig latin american population. But honestly? I'm in the camp that people can call themselves whatever they want. So if people living in the US have decided to call themselves "American", then the rest of the Americas will just have to suck it. LOL. I'm kidding about the suck it part.

But really....if a black person in the US wants to say they are African American, that's their right (OMG, I had an African chemistry professor from Nigeria that one day started a whole long, AWKWARD argument in LAB one day about how African Americans should not call themselves that..that only HE was African American since he was now an American citizen).

If United Statesians want to call themselves Americans as a shorter way of saying they are from the United States of America, then really....all the other countries should follow our lead and call us our preferred term.

It's only the polite thing to do.

That's awesome you can just say you're American! I could never get away with that one.