D&D 5E WotC to increase releases per year?

[teitan]

I had heard that "Yankee" applied only to the Northern states in the civil war, but I'm a foreigner, what do I know?

It’s the English term for American. It’s the southern term for Northerners.

 

[Dire Bare]

Veering farther and farther from the topic of the thread here, but...

This is something that I have been told a few times in my life, but never by someone who it would actually apply to. The Canadians that I know would generally be insulted to be called American, as would people from Mexico. People from South America use South American, when needed, but would more typically use Brazilian or whatever nationality is specific. People from Central American countries are often grouped with some variation on Latin (previously Latino or Latina, nowadays Latin, Latinx or Latine), but Latin-American is really only used for US citizens.

While I understand that you are trying to be pedantically and linguistically correct, it doesn't really work that way in practice. It would be confusing to call someone from Chile "American" the same way it would be confusing to call someone from Yekaterinburg "Asian" or someone from the Middle East as "African". Also, it can sometimes come off as a little culturally insensitive.

Yeah, most folks don't identify by continent, but rather by country and/or ethnicity.

Regional or continental references make sense only in specific contexts, and aren't consistently applied world-wide. If you refer to Europeans, Asians, or Africans . . . purposefully to refer to the broader regions, most folks won't take offense and will understand what you mean. Unless you're stereotyping and assuming these broad, regional groups are all monolithic groups of people.

But it doesn't work that way in the Americas. The term "Americans" really only refers to citizens in the U.S.A. Why? My opinion is that the U.S. is essentially a cultural bully, driven by the idea of "American (US) exceptionalism" and basically appropriated the term. The rest of the continent (North and South), let us have it, and are not super interested in being identified alongside us.

If you instead refer to "North Americans", I think most folks would understand you mean both the US and Canada. Likewise, "Central Americans" or "South Americans". The people and cultures of these regions are very different, after all, even from a broad perspective.

 

[Oofta]

Yeah, most folks don't identify by continent, but rather by country and/or ethnicity.

Regional or continental references make sense only in specific contexts, and aren't consistently applied world-wide. If you refer to Europeans, Asians, or Africans . . . purposefully to refer to the broader regions, most folks won't take offense and will understand what you mean. Unless you're stereotyping and assuming these broad, regional groups are all monolithic groups of people.

But it doesn't work that way in the Americas. The term "Americans" really only refers to citizens in the U.S.A. Why? My opinion is that the U.S. is essentially a cultural bully, driven by the idea of "American (US) exceptionalism" and basically appropriated the term. The rest of the continent (North and South), let us have it, and are not super interested in being identified alongside us.

If you instead refer to "North Americans", I think most folks would understand you mean both the US and Canada. Likewise, "Central Americans" or "South Americans". The people and cultures of these regions are very different, after all, even from a broad perspective.

Or maybe, just maybe it's because it's the only country with "America" in the name? You know "United States of America"?

Which not saying the U.S.A. doesn't have a ton of faults that include being a "cultural bully", but referring to the country as America goes back to the 18th century shortly after the founding of the country.

 

[Enevhar Aldarion]

It’s the English term for American. It’s the southern term for Northerners.

And also what most people in Mexico and Central and South America would know means an American. It became quite derogatory there due to all the meddling the US has done in those countries over the past 100-150 years.

If you instead refer to "North Americans", I think most folks would understand you mean both the US and Canada. Likewise, "Central Americans" or "South Americans". The people and cultures of these regions are very different, after all, even from a broad perspective.

Mexico is part of North America, geographically, not Central America. Central America starts below Mexico, with Belize and Guatemala, and ends with Panama. It is part of Latin America, the cultural region.

 

[Deset Gled]

And also what most people in Mexico and Central and South America would know means an American. It became quite derogatory there due to all the meddling the US has done in those countries over the past 100-150 years.

"Yankee" has always been a weird mix of both an insult and a positive identity. It started as an insult by the British to the colonials, but was then taken back by the colonials as a term of pride. In the American Civil War, it was an insult from the south but a term of pride for the north. Currently, it's used positively in New York City and is a racial slur in Fenway Park.

I think a lot of southerners would be insulted if another southerner called them a yankee, but might consider it a compliment from a Brit.

 

[Twiggly the Gnome]

I think a lot of southerners would be insulted if another southerner called them a yankee, but might consider it a compliment from a Brit.

I think the latter instance would be likely met with a "Bless your heart".

 

[Parmandur]

Icewind Dale is generally treated as part of the Sword Coast, and that is fantasy-Alaska. And created by a guy from Massachusetts.

The Barbary Coast district of San Francisco was also an inspiration for the Sword Coast, so even though the primary creator was Canadian, I wouldn't say the setting was 100% Canadian.

Really, just about everything in the attitude of the Sword Coast North screams "Canadian" to me.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Really, just about everything in the attitude of the Sword Coast North screams "Canadian" to me.

You mean everyone is extremely polite?

 

[Demetrios1453]

It’s not. It’s a Canadian who created a fantasy Europe and then shared it with his friends. Most of the Sword Coast is hardly Canada or the United States though but Icewind Dale is pretty Gold Rush era Alaska. But then nothing wrong with that. It’s fun.

Or Gold Rush era Yukon for that matter...

 

[Parmandur]

You mean everyone is extremely polite?

Actually, yes. Waterdeep is just about the most polite hive of scum and villainy I can think of, and I am not joking there.