America????

[pati]

Anyway......There really isn't much point in trying to correct anyone, at least around here, because it makes me look like more of an idiot than anyone using the term. Just about everybody, and there are plenty, that travels to the DR from Halifax, refers to the country as "the Dominican". No, I'm not saying it's right.

The point is, good luck trying to change the masses on how they refer to the name of the DR. Really......who cares, just sit back and enjoy all the tourist dollars.

No problem........No problem :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

You're right, bottom line you probably won't change anyone's mind and that's fine. I for example corrected the woman who works in my office to inform her. Apparently she needed it because she wasn't 100% sure if the Dominican Republic and the Dominican was the same. Would I correct her in the future no, once is enough. If she wants to continue to say it incorrectly that's her business. It certainly is no reflection on me.To inform someone that they may be using a term incorrectly is not the same as trying to browbeat them into saying it your way.The same would go for any American who says they are a citizen of America as opposed to being a citizen of the U.S.

 

[trina]

First of all what makes your opinion any more important then anyone elses. I am not nitpicking nor am I the one making this personal. I thought I was participating in an adult conversation with people who may or may not have different perspectives. I guess I was wrong.I hear people saying "it bees like that" , heck I even heard it in a song. That doen't mean it's correct nor would I would ever consider saying it myself. My husband who is Dominican has never used the term "the Dominican" or "la Dominicana".
As far as hijacking the thead, I don't see that happening here unless some of you start making it personal rather than just a conversation.

That's just my point. I'm not pushing my opinion, I don't try and change one's right to use the term The Dominican. You, and everyone else are. If it bothers you, don't read it. End of story, no one is getting personal here, just saying if you don't like it, that's no one's problem but your own. No one has to keep making a big deal of it, yet they continue to for no reason, because it's not going to change.

 

[pati]

That's just my point. I'm not pushing my opinion, I don't try and change one's right to use the term The Dominican. You, and everyone else are. If it bothers you, don't read it. End of story, no one is getting personal here, just saying if you don't like it, that's no one's problem but your own. No one has to keep making a big deal of it, yet they continue to for no reason, because it's not going to change.

.

Just because I corrected someone once doesn't mean I am trying to force them to do things my way.So I would appreciate it if you didn't misrepresent my intentions. Like I said it's just a conversation.

 

[miguel]

It's like!!

It's like beating a dead horse hoping for the horse to run a 100 mile race. Old tricks are too old to change. I just hope that my friends do not jump off a bridge because then I will have to do as they did since I have to do what they do.

Trina darling, we will NEVER see eye to eye on this one but I want you to know that this is not personal because I do love you.

 

[carlos]

One again,

La Dominicana and The Dominican are both incorrect.

Trina, if you want to continue using it, fine. It is not a matter of preception but just fact. We can argue until we are blue about this. The term is incorrect.

I have heard people on ESPN like Peter Gammons use the term, and Sammy Sosa and martinez. Neither my family or anyone close to be uses it because they would know better.

Keep in mind that I am not an ex pat.

I will not continue on this because it will never end.


btw, it is not about anyone haveing the right to use the term Dominican, it is about not sounding like an idiot when speaking of another country.

 

[trina]

.

Just because I corrected someone once doesn't mean I am trying to force them to do things my way.So I would appreciate it if you didn't misrepresent my intentions. Like I said it's just a conversation.

Pati and Miguel, I don't mean to seem like I'm picking on you, I can understand how you could think that I am, seeing I'm quoting your posts. It's many other self-righteous nitpickers on the site that constantly hijack threads, and it's like, "for what?" Leave them alone, many don't feel like the term is incorrect, and obviously, they don't either, otherwise they wouldn't use it. It happens everytime - it just turns into a big argument every time someone "corrects" someone about it, because all it is, is a matter of opinion. And eventually, this thread started by an innocent poster is closed. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and freedom of expression, so people should just give them that respect.

As to Bushbaby saying, "Surely, if the Dominicans refer to the country as La Dominicana, then that is how it should be used - The Dominicana NOT the Dominican!!!", then you're just asking us all to speak Spanglish. The Dominicana is not an English word, therefore, we use the equivalent, "The Dominican".

Miguel, I still think you're "da bomb"!

And do I care what other people think of me when I use "the Dominican"???

Not likely.

 

[miguel]

Maybe my last input!!

Pati and Miguel, I don't mean to seem like I'm picking on you, I can understand how you could think that I am, seeing I'm quoting your posts. It's many other self-righteous nitpickers on the site that constantly hijack threads, and it's like, "for what?" Leave them alone, many don't feel like the term is incorrect, and obviously, they don't either, otherwise they wouldn't use it. It happens everytime - it just turns into a big argument every time someone "corrects" someone about it, because all it is, is a matter of opinion. And eventually, this thread started by an innocent poster is closed. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and freedom of expression, so people should just give them that respect.

As to Bushbaby saying, "Surely, if the Dominicans refer to the country as La Dominicana, then that is how it should be used - The Dominicana NOT the Dominican!!!", then you're just asking us all to speak Spanglish. The Dominicana is not an English word, therefore, we use the equivalent, "The Dominican".

Miguel, I still think you're "da bomb"!

And do I care what other people think of me when I use "the Dominican"???

Not likely.

As I said before, it's great to have a difference of opinions because it opens the gate for a good debate. I could not have it any other way.

About me being " Da Bomb ", darling I don't know about that but I will have to start believing it because about 1,000 people can not be wrong!!!. Thanks for joining the club. Modestia aparte!!. Hehehehehe.

 

[Texas Bill]

KK,
I stand corrected & offer due apologies for not knowing the Pledge of Allegience, ...... What do we Brits know anyway?? I acknowledge (as I think I was doing in my initial post) that MOST people allow the "Coloquial" term to be "the accepted one". By jove fella, I even do it myself (& kick myself afterwards for being so "Lazy").

TexasBill.
MY point was simply that "YES" it has become so coloquial that we don't realise we are doing it. For someone to state that they have not heard "I am an American" being used to describe themselves, is so incorrect that it cries out for a rebuffal!!

I have thought of many other examples to the list posted earlier but as only ONE of those submitted has been (correctly) challenged, it seems a bit churlish to post more!! Don't get hot under the collar Bill - it is only a thought provoking discussion!! - Grahame.

Grahame(finally got it right!)
No offense taken. And I quite agree with you about "American" being a coloquial expression! As to using the term, "I am an American", I admit to using it many times, myself, in the past and will probably do so again, either on purpose, or from force of habit.

Again, I think a mountain is being made out of a mole hill.

Texas Bill

 

[LatinoRican]

Did the Vikings name America?

A number of theories regarding the origin of the name 'America" have been advanced, but none have been proven true.

First, and most generally accepted, is that the name 'America' is derived from the first name of Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian map maker who explored the seacoasts of the New World in the decade after its 'discovery' by Columbus for her most Catholic Majesty, Isabel of Spain. However, there is no substantiation that this derivation is correct.

Second, and less genarally accepted, is that the name 'America' was derived from one Richard Ameryke, a tax collector for King Henry VII. Ameryke was an enthusiastic supporter and financial backer of John Cabot. Cabot set sail from Bristol, England in 1497 and on June 24 he sighted Cape Breton Island and Nova Scotia, thus 'discovering' the mainland of North America. This is also unproven.

Third, the theory has also been submitted that the name 'America' derives from the Viking word 'omne-rike' meaning 'the remotest land. It is believed that the Vikings arrived in the New World 600 years before Columbus did.
'Omne-rike' would have been the logical name to apply to the great land mass as a whole.

The American Revolution and Proclamation of Independence coined the name of 'The United States of America' and it has been referred as such since. Hope this helps.

BTW, at the beginning of this thread someone posted that there are two 'Americas'. Actually, there are three: North America, Central America, and South America.

 

[Texas Bill]

LatinoRican;
What a wonderfully in-depth analysis of the term "America"!

I salute your efforts and your scholorship!

And thank you for correcting my mistaken spelling of Amerigo's name.

It is evident to me that we have had a number of posters who are laboring under a delusionary umbrella with regard to the use of the noun "America". I don't know what their thrust is, but it seems to be a bit childish when reflective analysis is applied to their commentaries.

Texas Bill

 

[NALs]

Just to throw a REAL spanner in the works, how do people feel about DOMINICANS who refer to the country by the nake of it's Capital?? YES, I have heard reasonably well educated Dominicans call the country "Santo Domingo" & when I checked, they said it used to be called that sometime ago!!
QUOTE]

BushBaby, Santo Domingo has been the historical nickname for the entire island. Despite Columbus giving it the name Hispaniola and the indians naming it Quisqueya, most europeans and people around the world knew the island by Santo Domingo, simply because that was the most important city for quite sometime in the Spanish empire. Santo Domingo did rule practically the entire Hemisphere from the late 1490s into the early 1500s, so everyone coming to this Hemisphere were naturally heading for the DR, which in those time only had a handful of towns, Santo Domingo being the most important one. There was even a saying in Europe, if someone in those times told another person in Europe that they were as rich as a Santo Domingan, that meant that those people had some serious money. Santo Domingo was seen pretty much as America is seen today, a place where ordinary people had a chance in becoming rich and powerful, which in those times, over night riches were common in Santo Domingo.

Another note, you will notice that every Dominican (with out fail) calls the city of Santo Domingo, la Capital. Ever wonder why? Well, it was ocassionally refered as la Capital Pre-Trujillo Era. After Trujillo changed the name of the city in 1930 to Ciudad Trujillo (that painted obelisk along the Malecon was actually built in celebration of the changing of the city's name in over 400 years). People were afraid of using Trujillo's name because if someone heard another person saying his name, people could assume they were speaking against him and that could cause someone to lose their lives. So, when people referred to Ciudad Trujillo (modern day Santo Domingo), they referred to it as La Capital. The nickname has been stuck with the city since then. Interestingly enough, along Avenida Mexico, in the San Carlos neighborhood (north of the Colonial Zone) there is still a manhole in the street that still says "Compania de Agua Potable - Ciudad Trujillo". I was surprise to see that since all of the monuments (save the Palacio Nacional- also built by Trujillo) have had their names changed and sometimes their physical appearance altered (as in the Obelisk), and yet, there is this manhole cover that is from that era and it's still there.

 

[trina]

Great piece of history, Nal...thank you for filling us in!

 

[jsizemore]

ney sayers keep reading

This goes to show how something as trivial as a nickname thread can go into all inds of cools areas as long as it stays friendly. Thanks Nal0whs.
John

 

[Fiesta Mama]

Thanks Nal!

Your post was so interesting and informed me about something I knew little about.

 

[pati]

This goes to show how something as trivial as a nickname thread can go into all inds of cools areas as long as it stays friendly. Thanks Nal0whs.
John

I agree.

Now that we are conversing with each other rather than slinging insults we may actually put this to rest and possibly open the door to new information.

Trina, I appreciate your clarification on your responses to my posts.

I would like to offer a suggestion and then maybe we never have to deal with this again. In the future if a new poster asks a question about "the Dominican" and someone (not saying it will be me) "corrects" them just for the sake of letting the poster know there is a difference of opinion on how the term should be used. After that instead of letting it become the focus of the thread we leave it up to the poster to decide whether or not they want to continue to use the term "the Dominican" without any further discussion.

LatinoRican, I have never heard some of the theories you put forward in your post but they were quite interesting to hear (or should I say read).

Nal0whs, I enjoyed your commentary as well.

 

[trina]

Grahame(finally got it right!)
No offense taken. And I quite agree with you about "American" being a coloquial expression! As to using the term, "I am an American", I admit to using it many times, myself, in the past and will probably do so again, either on purpose, or from force of habit.

Again, I think a mountain is being made out of a mole hill.

Texas Bill

I totally agree about a mountain being made out of a mole hill, TB. I think the general consensus of Canadians (cannot speak for other countries of the Americas) has been not to take offense to the US claiming the title "American". Canadians are a very proud people, and like to distinguish themselves as "NOT" being from the US...not in a derogatory way, but rather, as a sense of pride. We love the fact that we are Canadian, and don't want to be part of people thinking otherwise. Likewise, Americans wouldn't want people mistaking them for Canadians (well, unless they're traveling in Europe, that is...heheh).

 

[Jane J.]

You guys....are....keeping the peace! Brings a tear to the old eye....

I just wanted to ask how calling yourself "an American" is a colloquialism, in the absence of any alternative? Calling yourself a "Yankee" (not that you would) would be more colloquial.

At least in Spanish you can say "estadounidense" - which has no English equivalent.

 

[Santiago]

America o US?

I think the name America is exclusively tied to the US. One reason why I say this is because even Canadians call us "Americans". Although Canada is the biggest country in the North American Continent the US citizens hold the title of American most of the time. Why is my question?

 

[MommC]

There's that little bit of Alzheimers showing up again!

Or maybe it's just that I'm not quite as anal as I may seem to be......
When I ask someone where they're from and they answer "America" I'll ask which part of America? If they answer "I'm American" I ask which part of the States they are from.
So in my books being from America and being American are two different things (must be all that geography we had to take when I was going to school a lifetime ago! )
Whenever I've asked a Dominican (as in a citizen from the Dominican Republic) who lives off island, where he's from they usually say they're from La Repubblica Dominicana/Santo Domingo or the DR.
I also was one of those "foreigners" who used to say "The Dominican" when I first started posting on this board until I was corrected (with no offense taken) so now I usually use "DR" to save typing.
To me America encompasses North, South, and Central; Britian means England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales with the British Isles also encompassing the Hebrides, Europe is France,Spain,Portugal, Italy, Germany and surrounding countries, Asia is anything east of India etc. etc. etc.
Are citizens of Dominica referred to as "Dominicans"? I've never been so I couldn't tell you but it would seem reasonable to assume they are. If they are does that mean calling someone from the Dominican Republic a "Dominican" incorrect? I think not......
Because I'm from Canada and speak English as my mother tongue do I get upset when someone (usually not an English as a first language speaker) calls me English? Of course not, however I will inform them that while I'm "English" I'm not from England but rather I'm Canadian (as if my accent doesn't give me away to other English speaking people no matter which English language country they're from!).
I think we're all being a little anal when we jump on a new poster and hijack a thread because they've referred to the DR as "The Dominican".
Maybe we need to appoint an official "corrector" so only he/she could correct them and then leave it be even if they continue to use the term the "Dominican" as some English speaking Dominicans do themselves!

BTW Atlanta Bob I hope to be back in Atlanta in August....want to get together for some golf???( that is if you golf!)

 

[LatinoRican]

Domican Republc vs. Santo Domingo

I married into a Dominican family in 1986, but shortly after my wife joined me in Puerto Rico. In all these years of her family visiting us (mother, sisters, brothers, nephews, etc.), I have never heard any one of them say, "Ma?ana
me voy para la Rep?blica Dominicana." (Tomorrow I am going back to the
Dominican Republic.) I have heard them say many, many times, "Ma?ana me voy para Santo Domingo." (Tomorrow I am going back to Santo Domingo.)
They say this even though they may be going to Puerto Plata, Santiago or
some other place. It is apparent that "Santo Domingo" has become synonymous with the name of the coutry itself even with its own citizens.
It would be very interesting to find out how this has come to be.