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Post by captainusa1 on Jul 12, 2004 1:49:39 GMT -5
Thanks Cap'n. I actually have a cousin who lives in Texas for much of the year and he says that most white Texans are blondish or at least more northern-European looking, and that British/Irish and German ancestries far outnumber any others. He also told me that people of southern European (Italian, Greek, etc.) extraction are quite rare. I can attest to the fact that people of southern European ancestry are mainly concentrated in the Northeast. Texas is partially the South and partially the Southwest at the same time, however, therefore it is not totally Dixie. I also was not aware of the fact that interracial marriages on the frontier were as common as you say. I suppose the Melungeon/Native American genes are more widespread and there are or have been many people from southern states who claim Native American ancestry (Heather Locklear, Elvis Presley, Chuck Norris, etc. are a few famous examples). That's true about Texas. There's more of a German presence there than in states like Alabama and Mississippi. You're obviously right about Southern Europeans in the NE states. There are quite a few in Florida too. There was a movement started by some man (can't remember his name) who encouraged Europeans to marry Native Americans. He wanted to start a new American race. It sounds a bit bizarre and twisted now, but this was during the early days of the United States. I'll try to find more info about this movement.
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Post by buddyrydell on Jul 12, 2004 19:14:16 GMT -5
Yes I forgot about Florida's southern European population. Italians, Spaniards, and Cubans of Spanish descent figure prominently in its population. In any case, I'd say that it's gotten much more difficult to discern the proportion of Americans who are of various European ethnic backgrounds due to pervasive intermarriage. Italians, Irish, Germans, Poles, Jews, French, etc. are for the most part of mixed heritage regardless of how they identify themselves. I'm a good example of this I guess, because I consider myself an Italian-American even though I'm not full-blooded. I have many friends who are half this, a quarter that, etc., who basically identify with one of their ethnicities based on various factors (surname, cultural upbringing, proportion of ancestry, etc.). For me it's all 3 of these reasons, and I suppose I could also add in physical appearance as I certainly look more southern Euro than the average white American, even though physical differences are fairly minor among Europeans as a whole.
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Post by captainusa1 on Jul 12, 2004 21:39:45 GMT -5
You're right. Most Americans are mixed. I'm referring to ethnicity and nationality. Many Americans are racially mixed too.
There are quite a few Italians *and* Jews in parts of Florida. They tend to live in the larger cities. You see more people with ancestors from the British Isles in the smaller towns, especially in the northern part of the state. Of course, these are generalizations.
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Post by One Humanity on Jul 13, 2004 5:19:12 GMT -5
That's true about Texas. There's more of a German presence there than in states like Alabama and Mississippi. Here's a map: So not only Texas but the Midwest and the area near the Great Lakes.
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Post by captainusa1 on Jul 14, 2004 21:08:46 GMT -5
Here's a map: So not only Texas but the Midwest and the area near the Great Lakes. You're absolutely right. We were talking about southern states, though.
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Post by SwordandCompass on Jul 15, 2004 0:53:57 GMT -5
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Post by deuceswild on Jul 15, 2004 2:38:29 GMT -5
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Post by recluse on Jul 15, 2004 14:13:45 GMT -5
My completely unbiased opinion is that his magnificent voice is an Irish trait.
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Post by deuceswild on Jul 16, 2004 20:46:26 GMT -5
My completely unbiased opinion is that his magnificent voice is an Irish trait. Now that you mention it, that deep basso voice does sound like something you'd hear in a pub.
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Post by captainusa1 on Jul 17, 2004 1:02:03 GMT -5
Thanks for the link. It's a cool site, but the examples of European Americans were a bit lacking in some cases.
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