To find it reeeeally annoying when people refer to 'Europe' as if it is one country?

[SharkiraSharkira]

*Warning, may be extremely trivial

Saw a video on FB earlier entitled something like 'this is how X is done in Europe'. I can't help thinking 'Really?!'. That is how the WHOLE of Europe does X? So people in Spain, Russia, Greece, UK and Austria ALL do X thing the same way?

Also when people say they 'went to Europe'. The whole thing?! Which bit? There are a lot of very different places in Europe! With different cultures, foods, religions, languages, currencies etc. Even 2 countries right next to each other in Europe can be wildly different to one another.

Aibu to find it annoying?

US President Barack Obama has said Britain would go to the "back of the queue" for trade deals with the US if it votes to leave the European Union. He said Britain was at its best when "helping to lead" a strong EU and membership made it a "bigger player" on the world stage

Well of course he said that, he was absolutely correct. The lunacy of thinking you'll be just as big a player as a small nation alone as you are as part of a massive block of integrated countries shouldn't really need to be spelled out.

Coal I have definitely heard that Italian/Irish thing before. I worked it out but it is a bit confusing!

ding

Yes he was completely correct

Don't we refer generally to "an American accent"?

I don't. There are so many different American accents, I'll say if someone has a southern/New York/Boston/Californian accent.

I might refer to an 'American' accent but that's only because I genuinely don't know the different ones except 'southern American' (e.g; Louisiana etc) because I've never been there and experienced them for myself!

Even 2 countries right next to each other in Europe can be wildly different to one another

TBF - so can the UK. Or counties in England. Or even suburbs...

Sort of like when people refer to the USA as 'America'
There are lots and lots of countries in the Americas!

I routinely have students who describe Africa and Asia as continents - that's bad enough, but they're studying Development Economics (outs self totally )

I feel OP's pain, and raise her multi-continental idiocies!

I routinely have students who describe Africa and Asia as continents

Umm. They are continents, aren't they?

Quite big continents!

Damn, sarcasm fail Yes, indeed they are continents, and you are clearly not one of my (many) students who believes that they are, in fact countries

The god of Smuggery is punishing me for mocking them on MN

(Before anyone says anything- I mock them to their faces too )

Oh thank god hefzi

I was so confused ( and afraid of looking stupid)

TulipsInAJug

That's almost as bad as when Fox News said that the UK was leaving the United Nations.

Yes, indeed they are continents, and you are clearly not one of my (many) students who believes that they are, in fact countries

I teach primary and sometimes I get the impression they think Africa is one big 'country' full of starving people with no money and no food.

I frequently have to remind them it's a continent full of many different countries and it's very different to the media impression.

I routinely have students who describe Africa and Asia as continents

Last time I checked they were continents.

I was so confused ( and afraid of looking stupid

I did Google. Just to be sure I wasn't missing something.

x post

I was just sat here orlantia... going 'what?' 'when did that happen'

Could have been worse...i could have said to dh (in my amazing 'omg i have learnt a new FACT voice) that africa wasnt a continent

Sort of like when people refer to the USA as 'America'
There are lots and lots of countries in the Americas!

"America" is different than "the Americas". "America" refers to the states and nothing else. There is no other term for "citizen of the US", (other than, "citizen of the US").
I'm a Canadian who once had a guy from El Salvador tell me that we were both American. It did not end well.

I get annoyed when people say, "that's how it is in the US," as though the US is not 50 separate states with a million different ways of doing things.

The US has one government. There are a lot of things that are just the way the government wants it, therefore.

Germany and France have different governments and different languages and wildly different laws.

And don't get me started on Russia.

Speaking of continents and Brexit

Fog in channel.
Continent cut off

(made a bit irrelevant considering we have the tunnel now)

I don't know if I can get het up about it. Anyone with a fair few braincells would know that culturally Italy is a lot different to say Amsterdam.

I frequently have to remind them it's a continent full of many different countries and it's very different to the media impression.

I frequently have to remind myself of that. But, to be fair, Africa is far away. And at least I didn't learn much about colonial history in school, so wouldn't know much about the names of countries, etc.

What I don't get is Brits talking about Europe as though it's all one place. I had some lessons in British history at university, and I assume most British children learn the same stuff - namely, Britain having alliances with Spain, France, Germany, etc, against the other countries, marriages between the royals, et cetera. You'd assume there'd be some awareness that there's different countries there.

Sorry, again, Rufus, Orlantina and everyone...

Maybe I could just claim that it's an alt-fact, rather than a typo?

I don't really think Russia should count as Europe, though: it stretches too far for that to be reasonable. And "Eurasia" is just a portmanteau word, so that won't do either. (Clearly, I am still not much of a geographer )

Thats what i though andy

Then i thought no...i am being stupid again

Must stop thinking that everyone on mumsnet knows more then me