Considering there is North America, Central America and South America, I don't understand why people continuously use the term American to refer only to the United States.  Why has the term been narrowed to the United States which overall makes up a very small part of the combined Americas?
206984
People identify themselves with their proper country name, not their continent's name. For example, British, German, French, not European (though this term is gaining broader use with the implementation of the EU). Or Japanese, Chinese, Korean, not Asian (Country origin compared with general ethnicity).\n\nSince the United States is the only country in either North or South America with the term "America" in it's proper country name, that term has been used as short hand to refer to anyone who is a citizen of the United States of America. This may change, however, as the world switches from individual country economics & politics to continental economics & politics.
217140
I've come up against that often. It drives me crazy (and I'm from one of the two countries that do get listed). It seems that about 1/3 of people think there are only two countries in North America, another 1/3 think there are noly three (this time including Mexico) and no more than 1/3 of the people I've met (even North Americans themselves) know that there are dozens of countries in North America (37 countries and territories), which includes everything north of Colombia, Venezuela and the Guianas.\n\nIf you want to be proactive, you should write to the editors of the web sites that you've seen it in. Education is the only way to defeat ignorance!
572945
Americans do not refer to all countries outside the US as "Third World Countries" and not all successfull people in America are "foreigners".  The term "Foreigner" refers to people who are "foreign-born".   The majority of successful people in American were born in America.\n\nWhat make a country "Third World" is their common characteristics, such as poverty, high birthrates, and economic dependence on the advanced countries.\n\nhttp://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/General/ThirdWorld_def.html
332677
Americans (really "US citizens"--Americans include all those who live in North, Central, and South America) are not really stupid--many tend to be very ignorant though.  This, coupled with their patriotic jingoism, makes for an interesting combination.\n\nWe must remember to examine structural reasons for this rather than blaming people in terms of biology.  For example, how can US citizens be informed when their mass media is controlled by very few billionnaires who constantly espouse pro-corporate messages rather than messages that could make people feel like they have a sense of community with each other and the rest of the world?
252838
Politically and geographically, Mexico has always been considered part of North America (it was not a member of the United States of Central America that existed just to the south of it and is part of the North American Free Trade Agreement and not the pending Central American Free Trade Agreement).  Greenland, though owned by a European nation, is geographically considered North American.
474964
The country in question is called the United States of America.  \nIn the beginning, the English colonists overthrew the authority of the king. This event was and continues to be called the American Revolution.  From that era, people here referred to themselves\nAmericans.  Canada became a country later and it had less as self-identification of American. The same goes for Mexico.\n\nAmericans are from he United States and there is some ambiguity in naming between American or of the United States.  \nIn general, the formal name will be the United States Marines, but they are also called American.  \n\nThe name American is not to be grandiose.  It started as the national self-identification of the colonists as they became citizens at the start of the new country.
223269
I more important question is that:  If we, as americans, who live in North America, are in fact called American, they why aren't the people who live in South America called Americans????....why, tell me, why ?????
671947
Ok sweetie, first of all ignore the ignorants, they are partially right but they still don't know how to answer the question. Ok here we go.\n\n Amerigo Vespucci or Américo Vespucio in spanish (see the relationship?) was an italian explorer that in 1501 arrived in what now is Guyana (North of "South" América) he sailed through the Amazona River and ended up in Patagonia (The very south of the American Continent). \n\nAmérico was the first European that realized that this was a new CONTINENT instead of Asia (What they thought at the begining, that's why we call our natives Indians because that was the destination of Columbus). The news spreaded rapidly over Europe and in 1507 a publication of a map made by the German Martin Waldseemüller using the description given by amerigo (Américo) showed the new land name as AMERICUS (In Latin) or América (Spanish because Americo was with the Spanish explorers) in honor of Americo.\n\nThe actual concept of América is the name of what people call North Central and South America which at the end and technically AND CORRECTLY speaking is the name of the whole land that starts in Canada and ends in Argentina. Back then, and, some countries now call americans refering to all people of the new continent (Not only the USA).\n\nNow in the USA, This country was called in honor to that name and also was the first country that became independent from a European authority.\n\nBeing called United States of America means States unified in a land called America which means in some kind of selfish and honorable way that the name of USA is America.\n\nThe only thing I ask you to do is please know and spread the word because there's people that really don't know how they became what they are, and yes, you can and should refer to American or americans to all people in the new continent and the nationality of the USA citizens, but you have to explain when you mean which one. To finish my answer is that everybody that know the difference and knows how to explain it is right and everybody in this WHOLE CONTINENT is an AMERICAN, the north, central and south definitions came after.\n\nThanks for letting me finally explain this to everybody. It took me a long time to figure the why's and the how's (I was born in the USA but raised in Venezuela so it helped expand my mind and knowledge).\n\nTootles
187808
Are you serious?\n\nBecause the country itself is called United States of AMERICA. If you say 'American' it means one coming from the continent of North America, residing/originating  within from the borders of the USofA. \n\nUnited Stadeians is just ridicilous?\n\nI mean it's perfectly logical to call Americans Americans. You don't hear the people of The Republic of Macedonia wanting to be called the Republicians??
256946
I know what you mean.  When you say you're American, other people jump in and say, but so are Mexicans and Hondurans and Guatemalans, El Salvadorans, etc. because they are all on the continent of North America.  They don't get it, I know, and they probably never will.  Yes, citizens of the USA are Americans.  Mexicans are Mexicans and Hondurans are Hondurans.  Only USA citizens are Americans.
16319
You can't put America in such simple terms. We are a nation that is by definition a melding of cultures from around the globe. We are everyone. Good, bad, smart, stupid, rich, poor, black, white, and everything in between. There are awful people here and there are incredible ones as well. It is as hard to explain it as it would be to explain the nature of the people on the planet Earth.
338800
The term "united States of America" was first used officially in the Declaration of Independence, adopted on July 4, 1776. On November 15, 1777, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, the first of which stated "The Stile [sic] of this Confederacy shall be 'The United States of America.'" The name was originally proposed by Thomas Paine.
363654
Americans are how we from the United States are formally known throughout the world.  In my travels to England and Germany I always wrote my nationality as "American".  If I had written "United Statesian they would have laughed and asked me to correct it.  When Europeans refer to our country they call it "America".  No other country seems to have a problem with this but Mexico.  The misnomer "United Statesian" comes from the Spanish "estadounidense", an immigration term which replaced "norteamericano" ("North American, another incorrect immigration term for us).  \n\nMany Mexicans argue that Mexico is part of the American continent so they have the right to be called American too.  Well, they´ll run into problems if they travel out of the country if they put "American" as their nationality instead of "Mexican".  If you go to Europe you will never find a French person insisting that you call them "European".\n\nThis "United Statesian" ridiculousness is just a result of Mexico´s purported hatred of us, yet hypocrisy in their strive to be more like us by calling themselves Americans too.
601754
Well here is where the problem lies.  A person living in Argentia is an American.  A person that lives in Mexico is an American.  A person that lives in Canada is an American.  Our country is just united states of the continent North America that we live on.  If I dont get best answer for this Im gonna be mad!
255257
I ran into some interesting perspectives while in Europe.\nMany people in Central Europe referred to America as everything from Canada down to the southern tip of South America.\nAs a Canadian I feel that everything from the Panama/Colombia border north is North America including the Caribbean.
229466
I will definitely take your side on this question, listen...Yes, the Continent is called "North America" and it is included.  Anyway the U.S.A has been so dominant since "white people" have taken over the country and that may be why and EVERYBODY HEAR THIS:  The white people that say "I am half American and half English(U.K) are not.  The so-called "Americans are actually most of them are descendants from Britain and most of Europe.  Listen to this one.  What are "Native Americans"?  That's right, they are Indians, which means that most of the ones that consider themselves white Americans are actually European and here is another the term "WHITE PERSON" ranges from now..U.S.A, Canada, Australia, and most of Europe including Russia.  And yes about the government, the decisions they make do affect us, for instance(please don't hate me for speaking the truth) The War that we are in, in my opinion it is made a bigger deal than it should be and it is affecting us in one example by using up money and jacking the gas prices way up, so if I tried to FULLY ANSWER THIS QUESTION, it would be too long to try to read and if you want me to give you a full answer modify detail on your question and I will make it able to contact me.
45035
technically, there is only one "United States" but you are right in that there are several countries with translations equating. Most, however, are "the United State of..." Any country in itself can be called a state, and thus would be a United State.