How come American guys keep calling Japanese as Asian. Yes Japanese are Asians.?

Question

Even when they are in Japan, they are calling us Asians. They are in Japan, so I thought they know that people are Japanese and have Japanese nationality. Asian nationality does not exist.

It is totally makes sense that Japanese are called just Asian in the USA, because many race exist in the states.

Another question, If you know that the guy sitiing next you is Chinese do you call him Asian??

Answer 1

Japan is in Asia. So, to generalize, they call all all people from (Thai, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philip...) Asian. The Asian also the same, when they see white people, they call them : European. But they might be from America, Russia, NZ, Aust, Africa...

Not many people knows how to be specific, only those has been and lived in many many different countries able to see the difference.

For ur last question, if u see someone looks like 'Chinese', u won't know until u've speak with him. But, if u don't speak with him, and if other ask u who is that person, u might have to say : donno, but i know he is an Asian. :-)

Answer 2

It might be because americans are stupid =)

Answer 3

Perhaps we should have made slaves out of you and dominated your country after you were beaten in 1945. How does that sound?

But you worry about being called asian? Nobody in France, England, Australia, Spain, Germany, Poland, or Switzerland has ever called you asian. Right?

Answer 4

i think that it is a habit of most americans do this..they don't wanna figure out if ur frm taiwan, china , japan, etc. so they say asian. im indian n i get the "asian" word too...lol.

Answer 5

that was the "label" that was handed out, I never understood it either, cause by that word Indians are asians too. I just blame the whole generalization thing.

Answer 6

Because it is all on the continent of ASIA. So some people find it easier to categorize them as Asian. But until you've been there, they may all look the same to you.

Answer 7

Because many are fairly ignorant but are not willing to admit this. I'm a Brit to the Americans, because I live in Britain but mainland Britain consists of 3 countries, Wales, Scotland and England. These are very proud countries, people are proud to be Welsh, Scottish or English and like to be recognised as such. I don't mind being called a Brit but I don't want to be called European.

Answer 8

what people grow a custom to the stick with like me just because i have some speak spanish and have certain characteristics in me i am mexican but i am really from Barcelonia and of spanish/italian decent so we are stuck it is just the ways of the world no need in getting pissed over it.

Answer 9

yeah they can say "excuse me" why call us asian? maybe they jst dont know what to call us dont worry when you go to america when your gonna call them say "hey american" lol

Answer 10

hear ye, hear ye...

We call them Caucasian, white men, western people... when they actually have English, Germans, French, Italians, Spanish, Greeks, Russians, etc.

I guess they just can't distinguish amongst us whether we are Japanese, Chinese, Koreans, Vietnamese, Mongolians, Indonesians, Malaysians, Thais, Cambodians, Myanmar, Laos, etc.

Also their Geographical knowledge is very poor.

Answer 11

when you see i white guy you probably call him caucasian or of european descent because you can't quite be sure unless you know him if he is of welsh, irish, german, etc. descent. and God forbid we should say the wrong thing in our politically correct world, so Asian is the safe thing to say.

Answer 12

Continent of Asia ? I thought Japan was made up of a series of Islands ??

BUT to answer the question ...

If I know the actual nationality of the person .. I will refer to them as that nationality .. IF I DIDN'T know the nationality ..I would say Asian ..

However if I were In japan .. surrounded by Japanese people I would call you Japanese

rockominal2000' .. calm down will you .. re-read the question .. I'm an aussie .. if I were to be in Japan I would call the people Japanese.. If a japanese man was in Australia and I didn;t know he was Japanese I would refer to him as being an Asian .. THE person asking the Q was refering to when Americans are in Japan.