What about the Caribbean and Belize?
Anglosphere
Unfortunately the isolated position of the USA in global terms makes it infinitely more difficult for its people to experience the culture and lifestyles of other countries at close hand generally, not to mention the Languages aspect of all this, but at least it does have another member of the Anglosphere family as a very close neighbour to its north - Canada - but such is the vastness of the USA that it's mostly people living in the northern States that are the most likely to avail themselves of the opportunity to visit it.
However, in many ways Canada is culturally very similar to the USA anyway (except perhaps for Quebec which surely has to be the most "European" part of the North American Continent) and I suppose many Americans don't see all that much which is different to what they are used to when travelling north of the 49th parallel to meet up with their neighbours.
We've covered the Canadian v American accent issue endless times in this Forum before and there's nothing more I can say about that here....there are quite significant differences but the average Brit may have a hard time distinguishing quite what those may be....many don't have a clue tbh with you.
As for the New England region of the USA.....well, it's definitely the closest part of the USA in physical terms to the Old England but even so there's still over 3,000 miles of choppy, often storm tossed, North Atlantic waters between them, and there are similarities in many ways in such things as the landscape of the two, although, as with the climate, the Old English versions are "gentler and milder" overall.
Some of the first Puritan settlers probably thought there wasn't a great deal of difference between the landscape they saw before them on first setting foot on the shores of what later became known as New England and that which they had left behind them back in Merrie Olde England.
As for the climate - the odds of it being a clear sunny day on their first landing in New England are very much more likely to have been a lot higher than it being the same on the day they set out from Old England, and they sure as hell had quite a shock when they found themselves coping with their first winter in that part of the New World.
However, in many ways Canada is culturally very similar to the USA anyway (except perhaps for Quebec which surely has to be the most "European" part of the North American Continent) and I suppose many Americans don't see all that much which is different to what they are used to when travelling north of the 49th parallel to meet up with their neighbours.
We've covered the Canadian v American accent issue endless times in this Forum before and there's nothing more I can say about that here....there are quite significant differences but the average Brit may have a hard time distinguishing quite what those may be....many don't have a clue tbh with you.
As for the New England region of the USA.....well, it's definitely the closest part of the USA in physical terms to the Old England but even so there's still over 3,000 miles of choppy, often storm tossed, North Atlantic waters between them, and there are similarities in many ways in such things as the landscape of the two, although, as with the climate, the Old English versions are "gentler and milder" overall.
Some of the first Puritan settlers probably thought there wasn't a great deal of difference between the landscape they saw before them on first setting foot on the shores of what later became known as New England and that which they had left behind them back in Merrie Olde England.
As for the climate - the odds of it being a clear sunny day on their first landing in New England are very much more likely to have been a lot higher than it being the same on the day they set out from Old England, and they sure as hell had quite a shock when they found themselves coping with their first winter in that part of the New World.
The British people have no strong feelings towards the people of Ireland one way or the other. Generally the people of both countries respect each other as should all close neighbours with so much in common - and that's about it, and history is now history, as it is when we British people of the 21st century consider our present day relationship with certain other countries within the European Union.
So much water has now passed under the bridge, so to speak....and what could be better than that? Bosom pals all in happy harmony...... ;-)
So much water has now passed under the bridge, so to speak....and what could be better than that? Bosom pals all in happy harmony...... ;-)
If only the settlers had managed to come to the Northwest first, they would have found the climate to be the same as back home in England, but with bone-dry summers.
Replace "Anglosphere" with "the English language" and you guys would argue quite differently. Saying that Britain somehow defines the Anglosphere (whether we're talking past or present) makes as much sense as saying that the original English language is spoke in Britain (today and 200 years ago), whereas the language of North America and Oceania changed to become further from the original, whereas of course Britain still preserves the original. Britain has changed as much as the other English-speaking countries, and has been influenced by European countries such as Germany even more than even Wisconsin. In fact some of the largest cities such as London seem much less British of 200 years ago than cities in the other English-speaking countries.
Yes, I would agree with the above comment. Britain seems less British than some of the Commonwealth countries such as New Zealand. However when you go to New Zealand you realise that there are some rather unusual influences at work there. In particular the Maori / Polynesian influence, and the feeling that now-er-days the important economic partners are Australia, America and Japan (Korea).
Recently I have been watching the events in Sri Lanka (Ceylon) which used to be a country with English as its official language. The present troubles are partly a result of adopting a different official language, which did not satisfy all the population.
Language, nationalism and politics make an unpleasant mix.
In New Zealand they had a 'buy British last' campaign to reflect the disappointment that was felt when Britain joined the Common Market and became a European nation rather than the head of a world empire. In the first and second world war, New Zealanders had fought for 'King' and 'Country', the country not always being Britain. Now New Zealanders are treated as 'Non-EEC members' for Customs and Passport purposes, while Germans are waved through.
Recently I have been watching the events in Sri Lanka (Ceylon) which used to be a country with English as its official language. The present troubles are partly a result of adopting a different official language, which did not satisfy all the population.
Language, nationalism and politics make an unpleasant mix.
In New Zealand they had a 'buy British last' campaign to reflect the disappointment that was felt when Britain joined the Common Market and became a European nation rather than the head of a world empire. In the first and second world war, New Zealanders had fought for 'King' and 'Country', the country not always being Britain. Now New Zealanders are treated as 'Non-EEC members' for Customs and Passport purposes, while Germans are waved through.
Yeah, it's pretty insane and unnerving for Commonwealth and American citizens going through UK customs. We're lumped into the "Other Nationalities" queue which is very long, whereas EU members get to zip through the much shorter EU queue. They really need to set something up for us, because we were all part of the former British Empire. Maybe they could set up a third queue for us?
Well then the US should do the same for us. We get lumped in with everyone else in American customs. The only ones that get to use the shorter queue are American citizens, permanent residents and Canadians.
Okay maybe I don't have much attachment to the idea of the Commonwealth because I'm American, but seriously why wouldn't the UK prioritize the EU over the Commonwealth, a historic tie isn't an economic union. But like I said my great grandfather didn't go off and fight in WWI for king and country and loyal Canada (note: at least one of my great grandfathers was Canadian, but he was less loyal subject of the King and more preemptive draft dodger who "accidentally" took his family on the perilous ferry from Windsor to Detroit as soon as war broke out).
And even if Churchill dreamed of having some sort of special citizenship exchange between the US and UK (an appropriate dream for a man who would have been a UK/US dual citizen had he been born today), well, that seems even more unlikely than a Commonwealth exchange.
And even if Churchill dreamed of having some sort of special citizenship exchange between the US and UK (an appropriate dream for a man who would have been a UK/US dual citizen had he been born today), well, that seems even more unlikely than a Commonwealth exchange.
Well I didn't really mean a citizenship exchange, just a separate queue to pay respect to English-speaking countries. The UK is becoming more and more like a European country.
why wouldn't the UK prioritize the EU over the Commonwealth
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Maybe because UK is in Europe, I guess. And maybe because many british live and work in continental Europe and Continental europeans live and work in UK, maybe because they share like 2000 of common History, or because their way of life, theirs cultures are the same roots, I don't know. ;)
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Maybe because UK is in Europe, I guess. And maybe because many british live and work in continental Europe and Continental europeans live and work in UK, maybe because they share like 2000 of common History, or because their way of life, theirs cultures are the same roots, I don't know. ;)
The UK is becoming more and more like a European country.
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Uk is European country .
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Uk is European country .
I have to say that I agree here - the UK's future is with the rest of Europe, and not with any kind of Anglosphere, despite the commonplace notions thereof and the misguided attempts of some more conservative Britons to distance themselves from the rest of Europe. (Somehow they have not gotten the message yet that the British Empire has been dead for about fifty years now and that they ought to have gotten over it by now.) Of course, I do not always agree with everything that the EU is a supranational quasistate does, but that is another story.
Whatever people in the UK like to say about it, last time I checked the UK was a European country (see EU membership). The EU, whatever one thinks about it, is a concrete current entity that directly pertains to citizenship. The English language, not so much.
>> Their culture shares the same roots <<
The same could be said about the former colonies.
The same could be said about the former colonies.