What is your ethnic heritage or ancestory? (1 Viewer)

[Thik Nongyow]

Since many people on the forums come from different countries with different languages, cultures, etc. what is your ethnic heritage or ancestry? Do you or do you not relate to your ethnic heritage?

My ethnic heritage is entirely Thai, as my parents were born in Thailand. I would say that as a second-generation Thai-American, I have affiliations with my ethnic heritage but I have problems fitting into the culture because I lived in the United States all my life. If I had lived in Thailand for several years or was raised there, I would had fitted into Thai culture easier than I do now.

 

[Neil Joseph]

Born & grew up in England, but my parents are Grenadian with french, german, and carib Indian roots thrown in there.

 

[KyleS]

Can’t say that I am Thai but a good friend of my wife and I is half Thai. Her mom is full Thai and happened to meet her father who was a pilot in Air America.

As for me my grandparents were German & Swedish and about 3-4 generations back we had a full-blooded Cherokee. So I must be what you call a Mut by now. My wife is from Chile and her folks were born there so they most likely descend from Spain and possibly Indians who originated in Chile.

KyleS

 

[Robert_Gaither]

Half German (father) and half Japanese (mother). The main reason I'd have a hard time in Japan is that I can't speak japanese fluently and for the most part illiterate as well(though the wierd part is that I understand it quite well). Being raised mostly in the USA (after the age of 5) I lost the ability to be biligual due to the bigotry of most of the kids in school who made fun of the fact that I could speak another language so I suppressed it (looking back, maybe I should of been more violent and defended my heritage more). I like it here and when I go back (mostly to Okinawa due to relatives there) it seems more a divertion than really a home coming.

 

[Steve Christou]

I was born in London, England, my parents are Greek Cypriots.
Unfortunately my Greek has deteriorated to the point where communicating with my mum is a problemo, she barely understands me [who sniggered?], especially when I lapse into English now and than.I always speak English with me old man.
I'm currently enjoying the German tongue, its really stimulating.

 

[LarryDavenport]

12.5% Cherokee (mother' side)
12.5% Choctaw (mother' side)
25% Irish (mother' side)
25% French (birth father's side)
25% unkown..something Scandinavian (birth father's side)

Basically, I am a mutt.

 

[Jeff_A]

1/2 Spanish
1/2 Irish
Assuming everyone in my family is telling the truth.

 

[MickeS]

I'm pretty much 100% Swedish, all of my ancestors that I know of are Swedish, but I don't know if that's an "ethnic heritage", maybe it is. As much as I think Sweden resembles the US on the surface in many ways, they really are different when it comes to the "general mindset of the people", certain societal policies and little practical details. It's not hard for a person from either country to feel at home on the other country though, I think, at least I don't feel that way.
The strange (to me) fascination with ethnic heritage in the US is interesting though. I think of it every time I have to fill out a government form and have to put my ethnicity on there (something I had never seen in Sweden), how does a 50% Asian/50% caucasian person define themselves? They're just as much asian as they are caucasian. Basically shouldn't almost every person (well, except me ) put "bi-racial/mixed" or something on those forms?
/Mike

 

[Joseph Young]

Scottish/Irish with some French thrown in.

-j

 

[Aurel Savin]

I am .5 Romanian + .5 Hungarian. Was born in Transilvania, Romania but speak Hungarian much better than Romanian. I lived in Romania until 1984 and since then in NY ... but planning to go back in the future.

 

[Michael Warner]

I also have to scratch my head when asked to declare my ethnicity on official forms. Let's see -- German, Swedish, French, Dutch, Irish, Wappo, Algonquian, Sauk & Fox, and African. If there's an other box I usually go with that option. I certainly look like a standard white American but in a fair number of U.S. states I would be automatically classified as Black. Go figure. From that list the only cultures I feel attuned to are German and Sauk & Fox as those are the traditions that have been carried on through the generations.

 

[Michael Lee]

100% Chinese but American born. My father, although Chinese, was born and raised in Hawaii..so he speaks English only. My mother tried to teach us to speak mandarin when we were younger...but it is difficult when there is no conversational practice around.

Larry Davenport-
I am confused with your math. It appears that you are 125%..and you really favor your mother's side!

 

[Patrick McCart]

My mother's side of the family is 100% Lithuianian.
The father's side is Irish.
So, I'm Irish-Lithuanian.

 

[Bill Slack]

I'm 3/8th Irish and 1/8th Swedish (mother) and 1/2 English (father)
My mother side only emigrated earlier in this century. My fathers side came over with William Penn, back in the day.
Actually, I'm Northern Irish, so half of me has trouble dealing with the other half of me, sometimes.
We open presents on X-Mas Eve isntead of Day; which (I've been told) is how it's done in Sweeden. My family has been here so long, that we're all just Americanized.

 

[Dome Vongvises]

My ethnic heritage is entirely Thai, as my parents were born in Thailand. I would say that as a second-generation Thai-American, I have affiliations with my ethnic heritage but I have problems fitting into the culture because I lived in the United States all my life. If I had lived in Thailand for several years or was raised there, I would had fitted into Thai culture easier than I do now.

I'll be damned. Thai people are taking over the forum. Mwahahahahahahahaha!!!

Seriously, I'm 1/5 Chinese and 4/5 Thai.
Hey Thik Nongyow, I never thought I'd meet somebody that I could perfectly identify with. I was born and raised in America until 1989 when my parents decided "it was time to go home". I had to make an extremely difficult transition in my life that was two-fold, I not only had to abandon an American life-style and culture I was used to, but I was also making a transition from a town of 5000 to a city of millions of people.
I try my best to forget that time period in my life. Luckily, my parents weren't adjusting back into it as well as they thought, so we all moved back to the states (same house too. Can you believe that?). I think the hardest thing for me is that in Thailand, I was refered to as Farang, and not as a fellow Thai countrymen. It was the greatest thing in the world when I returned to Kentucky and was welcomed back by old friends.
Ah nuts, I'm revealing personal details about my life again.

 

[Ricardo C]

I'm something like 75% Spaniard, 20% Native American, and 5% African. At least, as far as we've been able to research our family tree. We've only gotten as far back as the 1860s or so. There's some Scandinavian blood in there too, but in a much smaller amount.
What can I say? I'm a walking melting pot

 

[StephenA]

I'm mostly English, with Scottish, Irish, Mohawk, and French-Canadian thrown in.

Don't know where my mom's family came from before Canada though. My great-grandmother was full blooded Mohawk(at least that's what they say, not real sure of that's her true tribe), and my great-granfather came from Quebec I think. My mom's 14 aunts and uncles and mother could speak fluent French. My mom was adopted by someone else due to lack of care and other stuff from her mother. My mom's 9 brothers and sisters were similarly adopted or put in foster homes. We met her biological mother about 12 or 13 years ago, and that's how we found out about our heritage. Most of my mom's sisters and cousins had children with Hispanics(Colombians and Puerto Ricans) and blacks, so I have relatives who are bi-racial. The cousin that has been around me and lived with me these past 12 or 13 years is Jamaican. His father is right from Jamaica, and has the accent and everything. My cousin can also speak fluent Spanish, due to living with his grandmother(who is my biological grandmother, but not real grandmother) whose boyfriend was Puerto Rican. I understand alot of Spanish due to this, but can't speak it or read it well.

My grandfather on my dad's side was from England. He moved here when he was 6, and was the only one of his siblings from England. My grandmother's family on my dad's side came from England too, but immigrated to here around the time of the Pilgrims. They lived in the same area ever since in Massachussetts.

I guess I have a varied and family. Sorry to confuse anyone with the thing about my biological family. The woman my mom has been with since she was 8, and who adopted her, is my real gradmother who I wouldn't trade for the world.

 

[felix_suwarno]

pure chinese, born in jakarta, indonesia. i dont speak chinese, hell, i dont even look chinese. people thought i was thai. now living in chicago as computer graphics student at depaul, grad level.

 

[Henry Carmona]

Oh Gosh, i dont know where to start
My Great GrandFather on my Fathers side was from Spain. Came over to Mexico for land when Spain was giving it away.
During the war, they burned his villa and killed all the workers. He fled into Texas/Mexico and hung out with some indians. Married a Mexican and stayed in Texas.
Grandmothers Great Grandfather was Mexican, but married a German lady.
PS-My Grandfather from Spain was thought to be indian by the US gov and was given a land grant that was never claimed.
Hmm i wonder if i can get that now

 

[Robert_Gaither]

I always wondered about this but isn't the definition of indian (from american pov not from india) the native people born north of the Mexican-American border? I always thought it was strange when someone states they're part indian but hates mexicans (you'd be amazed at how many times I've heard this at various jobs).