If born in England are they English?

Question

or

is to be English a very narrow definition which conforms only to the demographic most common to England- be it a racial, religious, ethnic or cultural definition?

Your views?

Answer 1

In one sense you aren't British unless your mother is, or she has indefinate leave to remain.

English is a bit vaguer as it is more a cultural identity than an actual nationality.

Answer 2

Since England is a geographical and political location, and English is either a language or a personal distinction of where one is from rather than a race I believe that if you are born in England you are in fact English.

Being English is certainly not a racial distinction as the English themselves are historically a diverse pool of many peoples such as:

Britons

Celts

Romans

Saxons

Danes

Normans

and later....

peoples from former crown possessions.

Kenyans

South Africans

Zimbabwans

Jamaicans

Other West Indie Islands

Malaysian

Chinese

Singaporan

Indian

Pakistani

Bangladeshi

The list is seemingly endless!

Answer 3

I personally don't see myself as English and never will! Until white people get out of South Africa and other countries which they are bleeding dry I am staying in the UK. White people can go to another country take over the whole place and think we should be grateful. You only have to look across the pond to see what they did to the Native Americans.

I really do think some white people have issues...not all because I know there are some good ones out there. It is just finding them...

Answer 4

To Mo if you were born here and consider yourself English why are you calling yourself an Indian!

Answer 5

Yes!

Answer 6

There is a massive difference between citizenship and blood. You should specify which you are referring to.

If you are born in England, you are English (British) by citizenship.

But by blood, say you come over here from Nigeria. You'll always be Nigerian. Nothing will change that. You meet an english girl, have a baby, the child will be half english and half Nigerian.

You get me?

Blood and citizenship are different things of equal (un)importance.

Answer 7

To be born in England after 1983 does not make a person born on british soil 'English' The law changed in 1983 so the right is not automatic. I class my self as 'British' rather than 'English'

Is it so different for a Scot to say the are Scottish or someone from Wales saying they are Welsh?

Answer 8

If you are born in England you are british. You are only english if you are english cultured, not all british people are english cultured...defining what means to be english may be difficult though...

Answer 9

by English laws - not everyone born in england ios considered to be english.

Those children who are born in england of english citizens or english legal residential parents ARE considered english citizens.

if the parents were on work permits, or visiting or diplomats, then the children are NOT english citizens.

accents do not necessarily mean you are english.

I am 4 generations removed from my english ancestry, (my great grandparents were the last to be born in england)  and even now as an adult I am told I speak with a british accent. I have never been to UK in my life.

Answer 10

Have to be genetically English, otherwise it's just a nationality and an accent.

Answer 11

im sure your nationality on your passport isnt "English" Like all of us in the UK we are all British!

Answer 12

What's it matter?

People are good or bad, I don't give a monkeys what colour they or their chosen flag are...    : )

Answer 13

Yes, people born in England are English, whether they like it or not.

Answer 14

even if you aren't born in England, you can call yourself English (if you have a UK passport),

however, you can't be English at heart

\m/

Answer 15

Being English is a genetic and racial inheritance - unlike American. How can someone of Asian or African blood be English? They can be a citizen etc... But they are not English.

Answer 16

Well I'm an Indian who was born in England and have lived here all my life (and will do for the forseeable future). I consider myself to be English, and see no reason why this isn't so!

Answer 17

75% of all the people living in England have at least one grandparent born outside of England.  So most of us are at least a quarter foreign.  The English race is an illusion, we're a mixture of just about everything successive invaders have thrown at us.  The English religion is to ignore it in the hope it goes away.  And the English culture is to get very bored with racists very quickly, knowing that most act out of denial of their Lithuanian granny.

Answer 18

in answer to the question english means your english and british.

you cannot be english or british unless your genetic line is the same.

otherwise its a nationality not a heritage

i can date my genetic line on both sides of my family back to when records began.

so i am english through and through.

Answer 19

In a word No,

Chinese= yellow-man

American Indian= red man

African=black-man

German=ugly Ari-an blonds(and that's just the woman)

Scandinavians=Nordic blonds

Italians=tanned that drive tanks with only one gear,(reverse)

Afghans=hairy dogs, you've guessed it (and that's just the woman)

Jews = Topo with ringlets

Eskimos= hoodies with fur (maybe Charles Bronson was a closet Eskimo ?

Scottish=white-men with red hair, skirt wearers whiskey drinkers, Guss?

Irish =as above but Guinness instead of whiskey,

Welsh= white except Shirley Bassey, who are found of sheep,

now the English=white stiff upper lip ,fish & chip loving, tough as nails with a soft side, manners, that make the best and worst of everything, i dont care to believe that any other colour or creed can truly call themselves English because they were born here, its not being offencive to say that a 1960's born in England child of say African, Carribean, or Asian parents is not English, and this childs children and grandchildren are also not English, there is no English blood line,at best they might be rightly or wronly known as British Asians, Africans, Caribean, we all come from the tribes of the world, but the English race has and will remain White in my book and if that upsets some people I cant help that.

I certainly would not emergrate to an African county and start thinking of myself as any thing else other than an Englishman.

Answer 20

Since 1982 (I think) being born in Britain doens't give you automatic British nationality, so, following this law, obviously being born in England doesn't necessarily make you English.

Answer 21

If they are born in England they can say they are from here, but your father's nationality is what your domicile would be.