The term Anglo can be used as a prefix to indicate a relation to England and the
United Kingdom, as in the phrases 'Anglo-American', 'Anglo-Celtic' or 'Anglo-Indian'.
It is also used, somewhat loosely, to refer to a person or people of English
ethnicity in North America, Australia and Southern Africa. It is also used, in
non-English-speaking countries, to refer to someone from any English-speaking
country.
Anglo is a Late Latin prefix used to denote
"English-" in conjunction with another toponym or
demonym. The word is derived from Anglia, the Latin name for England, and still the modern name of its
southeastern portion. Anglia and England both mean "Land of the Angles", a Germanic people originating in the north German peninsula of Angeln.
It is important to note that Anglo is not a technical term. There are linguistic problems
with using the word as an adjective or noun on its own. For example, the 'o' in Anglo means 'and' (Anglo-Saxon means of
Angle and Saxon origin), so there is only an apparent parallelism
between Latino and Anglo. However, a semantic change has
taken place in many English-speaking regions, so that in informal usage, the meanings listed below are valid.
Specialized usage
Australia
-
In Australia, "Anglo" is the abbreviation of Anglo-Celtic, which refers to the majority
of Australians who are of British and/or Irish descent.[1] By the time of the 2001 Census of
Australia, 38% of Australians identified their ancestry as simply "Australian".[2] Because of the history of British settlement of Australia and modern
Australian culture — which have been dominated by English-speaking people from the the British Isles — this is also generally assumed to mean Australians
of predominantly British and/or Irish descent, and is included in the Anglo-Celtic grouping.
In contemporary Australian usage "Anglo" is often used to denote the dominant ethnic group in Australia, either neutrally or
as a slur. The slur equivalent is generally "Skip" taken from the title character of the
Skippy the Bush Kangaroo television series who, as a kangaroo, fit
stereotypical mainstream concepts of Australia.
Canada
In Canada, and especially in Canadian French, the
term anglophone is widely used to designate someone whose everyday language is English, as
contrasted to francophone (someone whose everyday language is French) and allophones (those with a different
mother tongue). In Quebec, the word refers to English-speaking Quebecers in both English and French. Anglo-Metis is also sometimes used to refer to a historical ethnic group.
Ireland
Anglo-Irish is a historical term applied to the Anglo-Normans (Anglo-French) who arrived
in Ireland in 1169 CE or after. Their leader, Strongbow, was crowned King Richard of Leinster
in 1171 CE, becoming the first non-native to be King of an Irish province.[3] The term later came into use for anglicised Protestants who made up the Irish professional and landed classes during the 19th century. The Anglo-Irish
were often of Irish or mixed Irish-British ancestry and usually identified themselves as Irish despite adopting many English
customs. In this sense, "Anglo-Irish" identified a social class.
English speaking countries
Immigrants from English-speaking countries were referred to as Anglo-Saxonim, and now sometimes as simply Anglo.
[1]
For the term's use in a global context, see Anglosphere
Scotland
In Scotland the term Anglo-Scot, often shortened to
"Anglo", is used to refer to people born in England with Scottish ancestry such as Rod
Stewart and Sandy Lyle.
United States
In the Southwest United States, Anglo, short for
Anglo-American, refers to non-Hispanic European
Americans, most of whom speak the English language but are not necessarily of English descent. The term was introduced by
Mexicans speaking English as a second language, and has been regularly used by mainstream media such as the Los Angeles Times despite being considered ungrammatical and offensive to some. In the 2000 Census,
24.5 million Americans (8.7%) reported English ancestry. The figure is self-reported and
is likely far higher in reality since partial English ancestry is common among Americans who, accordingly, tend to emphasize the
more distinctive aspects of their heritage to census takers [citation needed].
Anglo can simply refer to English-speaking population or media. The term is also used as a technically incorrect
synonym for White. Non-hispanic Whites constitute roughly 70% of the total population.
Also, Anglo is usually found in contrast with Jewish, even though most non-Anglo people do
not see this contrast. [2]
Most non-Hispanics in the United States who speak English but are not of English ancestry generally do not identify themselves
as "Anglo" and some of them find the term offensive. For instance, some Cajuns in south
Louisiana use the term to refer to area whites who do not have Francophone backgrounds. Irish Americans, the second largest ethnic
goup in the United States following German-Americans, also often take umbrage at being
called "Anglo."[3] Additionally, other ethnic groups who do not identify as having English ancestary such as Italian Americans, Greek Americans, Jewish Americans, Polish Americans, and Middle Eastern Americans tend not to identify themselves as Anglo. Americans of English descent may also be
offended at being labeled "Anglo" (as opposed to Anglo-American or Anglo-Saxon).
References
See also
External links
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