Do you list your ethnicity?

[Eternaldarkness]

Since a saw a thread dealing with ethnicity, this question got me started.

Do you usually referred yourself to only one ethnic/race or list them seperately.

Living in hawaii, it is very common for someone to tell you they are 1/8 of this, 1/4 of that, 1/2 of this...etc.

Usually I would hear, "oh, I'm caucasian,"or "I'm Asian," or "I'm mixed," when living somewhere else but in hawaii its "I'm Portuguese, Irish, German, Japanese, and Hawaiian." or something similar. I was quite confused at first when I first moved here.

Does this only happen here or everywhere else? I'm just curious. It is almost like nobody here say "I'm multi-racial." but they rather shock you with a long list of ethnicity or percentages of each.

So, if asked, what do you usually tell them?

 

[tx_doc]

When people ask what my make-up is, I respond with: Irish, German, Cherokee and black.
Growing up, most forms would say "Race: Check One", but I would always check everything. They would tell me that I couldn't. I would respond "but I'm not one thing and you can't deny one part of me over the other."

 

[G-Lexington]

I'm whiter than Wonder Bread, so nobody ever asks. (And even if they did, I'm German on both sides all the way back.)

Lex

 

[robbieadam]

I just refer to myself as British. I don't even know what my other ethnics are. For all I know I could be 1/80 German. My surname is Irish so I suppose I'm from Irish decent. As for what part of Britain, I refer to my self as a Geordie which is the name for someone from Newcastle Upon Tyne. I have a strong Geordie accent and not a hint of Irish. But that is just from growing up in Newcastle. If had have grown up in Ireland, I would have an Irish accent. I have no idea why I've started talking about accent, I tend to ramble on...

 

[nitish]

If you look at me and have to ask, i will assume you're either being a smartass, or that you're blind.

And if you ask me what section of a certain continent my family comes from, i should be legally allowed to cut the tip of your nose off.

I just looked at your pic and i don't understand why you'd say that.

 

[Eternaldarkness]

If you look at me and have to ask, i will assume you're either being a smartass, or that you're blind.

And if you ask me what section of a certain continent my family comes from, i should be legally allowed to cut the tip of your nose off.

hehehe.. true, but not always.

To be honest with you, I can easily get that mixed up sometimes when I see guys from the pacific islanders (for example like: samoan.) Sometimes I can be clueless and cannot tell or ofcourse, I'm blind but doesn't know it.

 

[G-Lexington]

>>>And if you ask me what section of a certain continent my family comes from, i should be legally allowed to cut the tip of your nose off.

Ah, so they're from the Nose-Cutting Tribe of that continent.

(puts on hockey mask)

Lex

 

[thermodynamics]

Well, I'm definitely white. Most surveys, etc., simply have "caucasian", so that's what I identify with. But if I'm with a group of people, and we start discussing the specifics, then I go into it.

Just for the record, I'm:
3/4 Norwegian
1/8 Swedish
1/32 English
1/32 French
1/32 Danish
1/32 German

 

[Swellegant]

I usually just say "caucasian" without dragging my portion of Asian descent into the discussion... I like to save my Chinese ancestors for later on in the party. I mean, I look caucasian, and the Chinese last name just throws everyone into confusion, which is a lot of fun for me.

But I have noticed that people who are of mixed races will frequently trot them all out at the drop of a hat. It gives them a kind of distinction, it seems.

 

[nitish]

well my dear jy_star, just because you're black doesn't mean you're not ethnically diverse. I find it annoying that you'd want people to think you're one race/ethnicity. (btw, you're not 100% black, far from it hun) And so what if people ask if your ancestors are from Africa? (that's the continent we're talking about, i presume). There is nothing wrong with asking.

 

[timnmostud]

I have family members that have researched our geneology back a very long way on both sides of my family. all anyone has ever found was English, German, Dutch, Irish and Welsh. All white European! I keep hoping for something else to turn up! I hope they weren't all that boring! Not even any illegitamate children, yet! There is a rumor of one family member having married a black woman, but no one has been able to verify that yet. It's still a maybe. I have my fingers crossed, though! so far they are all as bland as mashed potatoes!

 

[metta]

I usually just say bi-racial. And then the next question is always....which ones? Then I have to explain that I'm 1/2 British and 1/2 Chinese. And then they want to know how that happened...lol... And I tell them that my parents met in the US. That I was born in England but grew up in California. And then they normally say something like...you came out really nice...

I remember one holiday party I went to a couple years ago, there was this elderly lady during the party that kept telling me, over and over, how lucky I was that I came out so handsome because it does not always work like that when races get mixed. I just kept thinking...oh my gosh...I need to get out of here.

My family is actually made up of almost every race.

 

[Scooter]

Im from new zealand...3/4 white and the rest maori...

 

[nitish]

I never said i was pure 100% black hunny, sweetie pie, apple dumpling... i just find it completely insulting to think that just because i am at least mostly black, that you expect me to have traced my history all the way down the tribe of people my family roots came from, the ship they were placed on, the families that owned us, and the present day location where you might be able to locate these people. Thats all i'm saying.

As far as i know, i am one race - black. I find it annoying that you expect me to try and find the other ethnic discintions in my blood, when in retrospect, that won't matter - even if i was mixed down the line with a strong, rich British heritige, i'd still be black to 99% of people.

No one should expect you to know all that. But then again you shouldn't cut off people's noses for asking.

 

[G-Lexington]

>>>You were warned...

Goddamned cheap hockey masks...

Lex

 

[Marbas]

It is almost like nobody here say "I'm multi-racial." but they rather shock you with a long list of ethnicity or percentages of each.

That seems to be a particularly US-type thing to say. It always seems a bit ridiculous to me when someone says something like, 'I'm blah, blah, blah ...1/16th Irish and 1/32nd Native American'. Of course we all know why they claim that.

I'm English; ie, a total caucasian mongrel spawned as a result of the mingling of many races over many centuries ....but I'm also 1/512th Egyptian.

 

[nitish]

There is nothing wrong with listing your ethnic make up. It could make for an interesting discussion.

 

[Eternaldarkness]

That seems to be a particularly US-type thing to say. It always seems a bit ridiculous to me when someone says something like, 'I'm blah, blah, blah ...1/16th Irish and 1/32nd Native American'. Of course we all know why they claim that.

I'm English; ie, a total caucasian mongrel spawned as a result of the mingling of many races over many centuries ....but I'm also 1/512th Egyptian.

lol...hmmm... I can see the egyptian in you.

 

[Eternaldarkness]

There is nothing wrong with listing your ethnic make up. It could make for an interesting discussion.

Well yes, there is nothing wrong with it..but its not always something interesting.

I've met people who give me a long list of over a dozen of ethnicity and then immediately tell me about how they get each one..before I can even know their name. hahahaha.

 

[Eternaldarkness]

For myself, I will usually say Asian.

Then they'll look at me weirdly and say "only asian?"
Lol.. then I say asian and some caucasian. I try to be as simple as possible without listing all the different parts in me.

Then there are some that will ask "so which of each?" and I feel kinda annoyed by it.

So later I changed to "I'm multi-racial." That is even worse. So now I'm back to Asian. Details isn't important. Its who I feel I should be.