Indeed, U.S.A. is not America!
America is the name of a whole continent. United States of America means that the United States belongs to America and NOT that America belongs to the United States. So, next time you want to refer to The United States of America, you can do it as U.S. or the States or whatever you want but not as only America. Gotcha?
How should I use the term America then?
Here we will show you some wrong and correct uses of the term America:
This is how we do it in America.
This is how we do it in the States.
- America is my country and I love it.
- The United States is my country and I love it.
- America lost the Vietnam war.
- U.S.A. lost the Vietnam war.
- Here in America we love Mc Donald's.
- Here in the U.S. we love Mc Donald's.
Please, note that this page in not about demonyms (gentilics) but about the way to call a country.
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Comments (1268)
El diccionario de la Real Academia Española recientemente ha modificado la definición de América y americano, probando que en la actualidad estas palabras son generalmente usadas en referencia a los Estados Unidos y desaconsejando el uso con este inapropiado significado.
https://www.telesurtv.net/imreporter/Yo-tambien-soy-americano-De-verdad-20151105-0033.html
En italiano la Enciclopedia Treccani hasta el día de hoy define América el continente y americano quien ha nacido en él. Pero los medios de comunicación y la gente los usan para los Estados Unidos.
En el Diccionario de inglés Cambridge. América: ''los Estados Unidos o Norte y/o Sudamérica''. Americano: ''de o relacionado a los Estados Unidos; de o relacionado con Norteamérica y/o Sudamérica''.
En el Diccionario británico Oxford. América: ''la masa de tierras del Hemisferio Occidental que se extiende desde Sudamérica hasta Norteamérica; usado como nombre de los Estados Unidos''. Americano: ''relacionado o característico de los Estados Unidos o sus habitantes; de o relacionado a los continentes americanos''.
https://www.telesurtv.net/imreporter/Yo-tambien-soy-americano-De-verdad-20151105-0033.html
En japonés un ciudadano de los Estados Unidos es un 'amerika-jin'.
En ruso un estadounidense es un 'amerikanec', para los hombres, y 'amerikanka', para las mujeres.
En chino 'meriguó' es Estados Unidos, 'meizhou' el continente americano: 'guo' país, 'zhou' continente.
En francés, en el 'Grand Dictionnaire Encyclopédique' y en el 'Petit Robert des Nomes Propres' se usa el singular para el continente, pero en el lenguaje corriente es común utilizarlo para los EE. UU.
En los diccionarios de alemán el nombre América designa el continente pero es siempre más difundido su uso para nombrar los Estados Unidos, ídem el adjetivo americano.
https://www.telesurtv.net/imreporter/Yo-tambien-soy-americano-De-verdad-20151105-0033.html
More proof that ‘America’ originally referred just to South America:
''Lo que hace la asociación de América con los Estados Unidos particularmente irónica – evidenciaba Winn – es que el nombre fue utilizado por primera vez en los libros y mapas del siglo XVI asociándolo a Sudamérica después de los viajes de Américo Vespucio en esas zonas''.
https://www.telesurtv.net/imreporter/Yo-tambien-soy-americano-De-verdad-20151105-0033.html
It's the same as "United Provinces of Rio de La Plata", which originated at the same time as "USA". The noun here is "Provinces". "Rio de La Plata" denotes the location, same as "America" in "USA". But the country was never referred to as "Rio de La Plata". They later came up with a glamorous country name: "Argentina".
But the USA is referred to very often as America, as you well know, so your observation has nothing to do with anything. Try again.
That goes for Roda too. Terrible.
@David
You're frustration comes from the need to muddle the history the name coined for the New World in one
of the many efforts you have put forward to lend legitimacy to misrepresenting the United States as America. All this because you like to think of the continental term American as your nationality.
The United States however is but 1 of 35 American Republics. The United States is no more America than Saudi Arabia is Arabia. Had the United States been founded in Africa its long form name would have been United States of Africa.
There isn't anything left to be said so for my part I'm moving on. Good luck to you.
How do you explain the labeling of the map?
You surrendered the moment you defended an obvious falsehood, you dimwit. This is Trump level BS on your part. For shame.
How do you explain the labeling of the map?
America is not a country, America is a continent, and this continent was first than the county of the United States, which was founded in America, the continent.
America is clearly both a continent (or continents) and a country, among other things.
United States is a country founded in America. The United States and America are not one and the same.
You conflate the United States with the name of its geographical location because you like to think of the continental term American as a nationality.
There is a North American continent and a South American continent. I don't believe there is an "American" continent.
Roda, I am sorry to hear that you feel you are misusing and abusing ‘America’ when you use it to mean the Americas, since this isn’t its original meaning. But don’t worry! You aren’t misusing and abusing the word. Words can and do have multiple meanings. Your use of ‘America’ as the Americas isn’t the word’s original meaning, but it is a real and valid meaning. It is exactly the same when ‘America’ means the USA. This isn’t the word’s original meaning, but it is real and valid, and it is used very commonly all over the world. Cheer up! The Etymological Fallacy isn’t a real rule that must be followed, so you don’t have to use the original meaning of ‘America’. You are free to use your altered version of the word.
And don’t worry, the original meaning of ‘America’ as South America doesn’t cease to exist just because you use the word to mean the Americas. I never read or hear people using this original meaning, but the word’s history obviously continues to exist even when people use newer meanings.
David, sorry but the ones misusing the word America are the ones using it to name a country which is in America. Sometimes you don't make any sense.
The facts make perfect sense. It is your lies and/or misunderstandings that don’t make sense.
America is the name of the New World. Like David I suppose is your Name. America is what the New World was named in 1507. No one short of being misinformed or having an agenda disputes this fact.
The meaning of the word "seven" is the decimal number 7. It is used as a name. The meaning of the word America is "Lands of Amerigo." The word was coined specifically as the name of the New World. Some people and places have been named after it. Our country in particular, the United States, makes reference to being OF it in its long form name.
America is host to 35 independent republic and is home to over 1 billion Americans. Today it is the most diverse continent in the entire world. Stretching from pole to pole.
It would be disingenuous to pretended not to know why we were taught to hate America
https://media.giphy.com/media/1ykDxFXMTjQ1HOpb5H/giphy.gif
“America is what the New World was named in 1507.”
Wrong. America is what SOUTH AMERICA was named in 1507.
It makes me frustrated and sad that there are people like you who will totally and obviously misrepresent what a source says. Your false words do not change the fact of how the 1507 map is labeled. Your lies don’t change what Schöner knew and said about Parias and America. We can all look at the map and see that you are wrong. How do you explain that what you are writing doesn’t agree with the map?
You're frustration comes from the need to muddle the history the name coined for the New World in one
of the many efforts you have put forward to lend legitimacy to misrepresenting the United States as America. All this because you like to think of the continental term American as your nationality.
The United States however is but 1 of 35 American Republics. The United States is no more America than Saudi Arabia is Arabia. Had the United States been founded in Africa its long form name would have been United States of Africa.
There isn't anything left to be said so for my part I'm moving on. Good luck to you.