How do you identify foreigners?

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Okay, this thread will wade carefully into the realm of stereotypes and broad generalizations.

Practically all our respective nations and countries are visited by businessmen or tourists from other nations. Often it is very easy to identify "foreigners" based on dress and behavior.

In the United States, race isn't really all that helpful since, well, we are literally the melting pot.

So, I pose this question: How do you identify foreigners? What aspects make a person look and behave American, Canadian, French, British, etc....

Please make sure to state where you are from, since this topic will be very different from state to state.

 

I am American and a very good indicator of foreignosity is the overuse of polite statements like "thank you" and "your welcome". Maybe we are rude or maybe they are just trying hard to mesh, but foreigners are definetely over-polite.

 

I'm American.

One thing that usually makes a European stand out - is their hair: Seldom combed, never styled (i.e. gell or mousse), and rather bushy.

 

Haha, thats the most stupid thing I have ever heard Blackhawk. Do your truly have so much spare time on your times that you can start a stupid thread like this up?

I'm off to comb my hair, hopefully I might make it less bushy in the process .

 

From Europe.

#1: Accent, even if a chinese speaks a perfect english, you can still hear his accent; a small "mgwmg."

#2: Since they do not know what is considered rude, in those small, subtle, ways; they sometimes tend to do things like that. For example; laughting is often considered threatening (here, based on a study), so if a foreigner keeps laughting out loud and often...

Other than that, if they could speak perfect finnish and look like a regular finnish Joe, I doubt anyone could distinguish him from the rest.

 

Wearing sunglasses on the Underground. Always a dead giveaway.

 

Wearing a hat and a Hawaiian shirt, and holding a camera. Especially in England - no English person would do that, except in another country. Not one that I know, anyway.

 

I'd hate to say it Alavin but I know plenty of people who do that here in England...and they're not foreign.

Personally I don't care if someones foreign and if I really want to know theres one sure fire way to tell... Ask them!

 

There the obvious stuff, like accents.

Look to see the way someone eats. If they don't switch their fork to their right hand (to eat) after cutting something with their knife, that's usually a European thing.

I've noticed a lot of Europeans don't use the "condiments" like ketchup and mustard and soy sauce and pancake syrup.

Also, if someone doesn't pay attention to which side of town is the "rough" side.

There's others, but those occur to me first.

 

People making pictures of coffeeshops usually are foreigners.

 

I know that this might be considered racism to some, but I swear to God here, every American I've ever know is below-average intelligence. At least, those that I know in person, not you guys on the boards. Other than that, I live in a town where you're either English, Irish, Portugeuse, or part of a small group of another descent. The only people I know born in other countries are my Polish friend, and the dumbest person I've ever known who happens to be American. He once tried to bet my friend $5 that Montreal wouldn't win the Stanley Cup this year, then my friends like "I bet you 500 cents they will!" so he said that it was too much money.

 

Well, when I started reading this thread, I was laughing so hard I could barely stop -- Blackhawk -- HAIR?!?! lol! You cannot be serious (me thinks you need to get out more and come visit Seattlites in the land of the rainy and bad hair days -- power to us foreigners on the west coast!)

As I said, I began this thread laughing, until I got to reepnorp's comment about sub-intelligence Americans - a shining example of HIS intelligence, mind you. While we've had this conversation in the chatroom a few times before, it simply amazes me how people associate intelligence to nationality, and many times attribute it to it. Reepnorp -- I don't think the comment is racist (Americans aren't a different race -- look up the definition )...I do, however, think it's STUPID.

 

It does not make any sense to match intelligence with nations. As for me, only individual people (perhaps groups, organizations) can be judged in anything.
It is another question how the goverments act. Nations should not be judged based on the politics of their governments either.

[ January 01, 2004, 19:24: Message edited by: Baronius ]

 

You notice foreigners by their shifty eyes, stooped posture and suspicious behaviour!

 

They have another skin color

 

If you're in Holland on a beach, and you accidentally fall into a hole, you can be sure there's at least one German nearby.

 

Hehe! On that same beach, you might find a snowman with red hair, also known as 'someone from Brittain'

 

*sigh* These kind of stereotypes really piss me off.

 

Okay you knuckleheads.... lets get on topic.

One of the reasons I posted this topic was to see what culturual differences appear between states and parts of the world. Different parts of the world have different rules for dress, hair, behavior, etc... and these differences can create incorrect interpretations of others.

For instance in the United States, if you do not have a beard, you are expected to shave every day - before you leave the house. People who don't are seen, very often, as dirty and disheveled. Of course, people in other parts of the world have different standards.

Here's the cultural aspect I was trying to gleam. What makes you notice "foreigners" is often very telling about how your society sees itself.

Often the affects can be benign - in the case of stereotypes which amplify the differences based on a culture's norms. Sometimes they can cause great misreads of intention - which resulted in the '91 Gulf War.

 

I've never paid much attention, but accent is a dead giveaway. But then again...I'm in the US, so that's not much help either...We're ALL foreigners!

Whenever I travel, I notice that people always look at my shoes...Is that how people identify Americans overseas?