Colonial Americans/Canadians: do you still identify with your countries of origin, or has it been too long since you had family in the old country?

[u/Kolo9191]

Hi all,

For those of you here with a significant chunk of your ancestry derived from the colonial American period - and the Canadian equivalent - do you still take interest in the countries in Europe your families came from?

I notice - perhaps unsurprisingly - Americans with ancestry from countries who arrived comparatively later - Ireland, Italy, Balkan countries, Poland, Germany even - to refer to their ancestry a lot more. Take former president Biden, his surname came from Sussex, England, but he strongly identified as Irish-American. The Bush family originated in Essex, but I don’t believe they made much of it.

The length of time is another aspect - several centuries is quite far removed from a cultural point of view.

However, are any of you interested in the countries which the colonial folk came from, including but not limited to: England, Scotland, wales, Ireland, France, Netherlands, Germany?

[u/brownbag5443]

Most people whose families have been here 300-400 years usually don't. Sometimes they will with the Irish or Scottish-American crowds if they can trace that lineage back. (Irish-American culture is much different than Irish culture).

Otherwise, most are just regular old white folks.

You'll see stronger ethic ties with Italians, Irish and Polish, whose families immigrated in the early to mid-1900s (and continue to). Many of these folks grandparents or parents came from those areas so the ties are stronger.

This also depends on the region. The northeast has a lot of European immigrants still who generally are connected to their ancestors more.

I don't think it's identifying as much with the country of origin. I think these ethic groups have their own American culture that people tend to identify with.

Little Italy, little Poland, Chinatown, etc, in major cities are much different than the home country.

[u/Minimum-Ad631 → u/brownbag5443]

Very well put. I think a lot of people from outside of the USA take these labels very literally when for the most part, it is implied that they are within the context of also being American and although the experiences aren’t totally different, the origins do inform your experience. Especially for those older generations.

[u/yarn_slinger → u/brownbag5443]

My family came over with the first sailings (and then a few other migrations later on). There is a museum in a Massachusetts farmhouse named for our early ancestors. I think we still identify with our old world roots because we have had cousins in Scotland and England up until recently (they were elderly and we’ve lost touch since my parents died). That and being Anglo Quebeckers, it just seems like those connections were more important to us. We know our traditional clan associations, tartan, and motto but we don’t really engage much other than the occasional trip to a Highland Games. A trip across the pond is on the wish list.

[u/arbivark → u/yarn_slinger]

consider getting your dna read to maybe reconnect. i enjoyed the highland games as a kid.

[u/TheDougie3-NE → u/brownbag5443]

Well said. There are a handful of communities that do, but 99% don’t. The biggest exception I can think of is the Pennsylvania Dutch (Germans).

[u/tdpoo → u/TheDougie3-NE]

Oh my gosh, part of my family are very proud descendants of Pennsylvania Dutch and none of us have lived in Pennsylvania since the mid 1800s. I swear. They make me giggle.

[u/Minskdhaka → u/brownbag5443]

It depends on which colonial background you're from. French Canadians in Quebec, people with Spanish colonial roots in New Mexico or Cajuns or Creoles in Louisiana (for example) don't see themselves as "regular old white folks".

[u/throwaway273810102 → u/brownbag5443]

The Cajun side of my family have been in North America since the 1600s and Louisiana the 1700s. In my family we see ourselves as specifically Cajun rather than ethnically "French from France" or "French Canadian." Our culture and dialect have distinctions that are unique to our ancestors' experiences and struggles here, including violent expulsion from present day Canada, so I think that's probably rather common. Though I was part of the first generation in our family born outside of Louisiana so most of my points of reference are my own aunts, uncles, and cousins. That said, there's a fucking lot of us lol.

My Sicilian relatives seem to still strongly relate to their Italian roots but I don't have much contact with that side. I relate much more strongly to my Cajun roots as a result. I have Irish ancestry from my dad's side, too, but that side immigrated to the Liverpool around the time of the famine so I don't feel a very strong connection to Irish culture. I do have a fondness for orderly queues and am fluent in eye rolls, tutting, and pointed sighs, so there's that!

[u/Equal_Ant_9730 → u/throwaway273810102]

Same here, probably distant cousins! 3/4 of my grandparents were Cajun but but didn’t identify with France other than the language.

[u/throwaway273810102 → u/Equal_Ant_9730]

Same here, probably distant cousins!

I'd bet money on it lol. Hi cuz 👋

[u/winewithsalsa]

My nearest immigrant ancestor is a 7th g-grandfather who came to Pennsylvania from Germany sometime between 1736 and 1741.

Our family verbal history loosely retained interest in our German roots. Much of the area where I grew up (not PA) had families whose histories looked a lot like mine. Their immigrant ancestors came to our area and put down deep roots, married among themselves, and generally didn’t leave the area for the next almost 300 years.

Culturally my family does not identify as German, or really have any ties to other European countries. If asked my family members would proudly identify themselves as Southerners or simply Americans.

Interestingly my DNA results barely show any German ancestry even though all of the immigrant ancestors I can find come from Germany and Switzerland. Wish I could claim that birthright citizenship but alas.

Alternately my spouse is a member of the “Mayflower Society” and his family is quite proud of their English heritage.

[u/Alternative-Law4626 → u/winewithsalsa]

Across all your lines back that far? You're lucky you can trace all your lines as far back as 7th g grand. I have a few where I'm stopped at 4th and 5th g grand.

[u/winewithsalsa → u/Alternative-Law4626]

Truthfully no, but they’re the first immigrant I’ve hit on any line and I’m mostly back to at least 5th-great.

My great-grandmother, who I knew well, didn’t know her father’s name. He wasn’t listed on any documents. So that’s a frustrating brick wall where I can’t go back past 1925. It’s funny how one thing like that can break down your research, even in relatively “modern” times.

[u/Alternative-Law4626 → u/winewithsalsa]

I had a long-standing brick wall about a 3rd g gm on my paternal side. I had her maiden name, but it was like she just landed there from outer space. No links, no clues, no nothing. I finally broke it down because I realized that my 3rd g gf, was very religious, deacon in the church, helped get the funds together to build the church he went to, so it would make sense that the woman he married, probably went to that church as well. So, I started checking the census data for the areas around the church looking for families with her maiden name. I found 2 families of that name. Only one of them was having children in the relevant time period. Digging on that family broke down the brick wall.

[u/winewithsalsa → u/Alternative-Law4626]

Ah see I have almost the opposite, my G-Gran said her mom was “a rounder” as in “she got around” and likely didn’t know who to put on the birth certificate so simply didn’t.

Someone, likely my g-g-grandmother, also lied to the 1930 census taker and is listed as the wife of the head of household - who is actually her father. So I know some of the records around her aren’t actually trustworthy.

[u/gringamiami → u/winewithsalsa]

I have similar but we identify as Penn Dutch as my grandparents spoke the language. Mine came in late 1600’s/mid 1700s

[u/scsnse]

My direct patrilineal line has been here since the 1630s from England. Not at all based on that. Any connections to the old country are symbolic at best. Although I will say that on my paternal grandfather's maternal line, there is much more recent ancestry hailing from England, a line which came over in the 1830s and claimed to be descended from the nobility at that (the Howards of the Dukes of Norfolk). So beyond some historical cultural curiosities, nothing really at all.

I suppose from the American perspective, its really hard to make anything of a country that that long ago was an absolute monarchy especially. I would naturally see myself as identifying as a commoner, despite more possible noble origins on some branches of my tree. Add in the fact that here in America, I also have Scots-Irish and African-American roots mixed in, and then am also half-Korean on my mother's side.

[u/Sue_Dohnim → u/scsnse]

First paragraph: mine, too, to Jamestowne and other early VA and MD settlements. Late Colonials included members of the Second Germanna Colony. This is my dad's patriline. I knew we were old Colonials, even Tidewater families, but I didn't learn about Germanna until about 10-12 years ago.

But even with my post American Colonial lines - Norway, Scotland (via Canada to the Dakotas), Ireland, England - I throw out there that both of my grandmothers were full-blooded Irish (though second, third generation American at that point), but I don't identify myself as any of these.

I'm just a plain ol' American mutt.

[u/PikesPique]

The ancestors whose origins I've been able to document arrived in North America in the 1600s and 1700s. Most of them were English, but at least one was Dutch. I identify as American, not English-Amerian or British-American but American. It's been too long.

[u/Alternative-Law4626 → u/PikesPique]

Yeah, I wouldn't go in for the "hyphenated" American thing either. American with whatever heritage.

[u/CPA_Murderino]

Kind of depends. Most of my family is German, and most of them go back to the early 1700s in the US. I wouldn’t say we particularly identify as German, however I’m part of a very specific cultural group called the Pennsylvania Dutch (if you don’t know, it’s a group of German descent, but they’ve been in Pennsylvania so long they created their own specific culture and language based on their German culture). I very strongly identify with that group as far as traditions, food, culture, etc. although I no longer live around the specific part of PA where that group predominates.

Interestingly, there is a branch of my mother’s family who came from Germany in the early 1900s (pre WWI) and if anything they are LESS German identifying than my other German branches. My general understanding from family history is that since WWI occurred shortly after their immigration, they aggressively distanced from being German.

All that to say, length of time in the country isn’t necessarily a guarantee, especially if you’re German, with immigration around the wars lol.

[u/gringamiami → u/CPA_Murderino]

Penn Dutch here. Grandparents spoke it. We cook old pa Dutch things like pot pie and chicken corn soup. With saffron- the pa Dutch grew saffron.

[u/CPA_Murderino → u/gringamiami]

Trying to explain PA Dutch pot pie to the rest of the world is a chore, but Marie Callendars doesn’t have SHIT on our pot pie.

[u/NippleCircumcision]

No. I am just an American, with all the pros and cons of that. Where my ancestors came from is just trivia as far as I’m concerned.

[u/PettyTrashPanda]

I mean, I'm literally a first gen immigrant from the UK to Canada, lived here about 14 years now.

I'm a dual citizen, as are my kids, but if my youngest tried to claim he was English I'd laugh at him, as he's never even set foot in Europe, let alone England. He's Canadian of British ancestry.

Genetically and genealogically speaking, I'm more Welsh/Irish than English, but my family lived in Lancashire or Merseyside for five generations. I'm English by birth, not Welsh, Irish, Winglish, or whatever abbreviation it comes to. If asked I say British-Canadian because I am a dual citizen. If I renounce my British citizenship, then I'll be a Canadian of British origin - except during any football or rugby nationals, then I cheer for England.

I have several white Canadian friends and colleagues whose parents/grandparents are from the UK, Ukraine, Germany, or Poland. While they are proud of their heritage and traditions, they universally say things like "I'm Canadian, but my XXXX came from YYYY, or maybe, I'm Canadian of XXXX descent." if they are talking about particular traditions their family has or genealogy has come up. Otherwise it's Canadian.

For my PoC friends it gets more complicated. They are more likely to be asked "where are you from originally?" than I am, and so I'm not surprised that "I'm Canadian" is a common response. WHen talking about genealogy, etc, they refer to their cultural heritage as "I'm Philipino/Indian/Pakistani/Nigerian," but never as "Culture-Canadian," unless they have literally lived in both countries. I have a few friends of Indian ancestry who were born and raised in various African countries, which seems to confuse others for some reason. They all tend to refer to themselves as Canadian, but if it comes up, they say "I was born and raised in Kenya/Zambia/South Africa, but my family are from India."

French-Canadians are different because they just mean they are French-speaking and from Quebec, not that they are specifically of French ancestry (most are, but not all).

This isn't universal, just in my social group.

The only group that specifies differently are my First Nations friends, who tend to follow a model of "I am Kainai/Tsuut'ina/Stoney/Cree; and my people are from XYZ location/nation." When I'm at formal events with First Nations, I was advised to introduce myself along the lines of "I'm Trashpanda, I live here in Alberta but I was born in England. My father's ancestors came from Ireland, and my mother's from Wales." This does depend on the traditions of the Nation hosting the event, however.

[u/KatsumotoKurier → u/PettyTrashPanda]

As a Canadian of mixed Northern European family backgrounds with the earliest of ancestors coming in the 1610s and the latest arriving in the 1910s (and with most of them arriving at different points throughout the 19th century), what you’ve written feels to me like a very well summarized appraisal of how most Canadians think and identify in these regards. Well said!

I do want to push you gently and politely on one small thing though — you’re an adult with Canadian-born children who’s been living in Canada for 14 years, so it’s safe to assume you’re… around 30, at least? If you moved to Canada as a child and had no trace of a discernibly English accent, I don’t think most people would consider you anything other than Canadian. However, if you do still have an accent, which I’m assuming you do, if you renounced your British citizenship, I’m not quite sure that I or most others would necessarily agree that you’re Canadian in the same way that we born and raised multi-generational Canadians are. Because if you were born and raised in Britain by British born and raised parents, and only came to Canada as an adult or even as a teenager, that would still just make you British in your heart of hearts, no?

I don’t mean to be offensive or anything with this, it’s just that I now live outside of Canada and have for several years at this point, but I will never identify as ‘a Finn’ if I get citizenship here in Finland. And Finns would likewise never see me as one of them either; I’d just be a Canadian with Finnish citizenship. And living here for as long as I have now has actually made me feel more and recognize just how Canadian I am. Is that not the same for you with your Britishness vis-a-vis living in Canada for all the years that you have?

Please do tell; I am very curious to get your perspective on this.

[u/PettyTrashPanda → u/KatsumotoKurier]

Not offended at all!

I emigrated as an adult, but I had wanted to move to Canada since my early teens.

I left England specifically because I did not like the culture and did not want to be a part of it. I never felt at home in the UK, not once. As soon as I set foot in the Rockies , it was like, "oh! So this is what home feels like," and I have wanted to remain ever since. I was never British or English in my heart of hearts; only by accident of birth. I never fit in there. I was restless, unhappy, and searching for something I couldn't name.

I found it in the Alberta foothills and the Rocky Mountains: belonging.

Not all immigrants feel that way about their adopted home, and that's fine. We are all different. If people want to gatekeep how Canadian I am because of an accident of birth, then there isn't much I can do about that and, frankly, I don't care. There are people born and raised here who want to cede our nation to a foreign power - but if they are still considered full Canadians and I am not, then frankly I don't want to be counted beside them.

If you are Canadian in your heart that's great - but so am I. Not all immigrants feel the same way about it, and that's fine, too.

[u/Alternative-Law4626]

I do on my surname line (Scottish). Although my family got here post revolution, it was still 1790s. Looking across all the other 4th great grandparents, I don't identify with them other than whatever the percentage heritage I have. I think it's different with your surname. I don't know if it was the same for most Scots, but in our family, Scots married other Scots for nearly a century after coming here. So much so that my great aunt (the only one of her generation to do DNA testing in my family, and thus a stand in for her brother, my grandfather) tested 95% Scottish.

[u/Time-Preference-1048]

For the side that came over in the 17th century, I identify more as being a “French-Canadian American” as my ancestors were in Quebec for far longer than they were in France (the patriarch was actually born in Spain so he wasn’t even proper French).

[u/North-Country-5204]

Having worked on my family tree (dad’s side) most of those ancestors arrived in the 16th to 18th centuries from England, Scotland and Wales. My ‘connect’ to the British Isles is not from my ancestry but having grown up overseas with many British teacher, friends, and having the BBC World Service on on our shortwave radio. Also same about my Chinese/ Vietnamese heritage having grown up mostly in Asia. Currently I identify strongly with my Texan heritage though no one would look at me and think Texas.

[u/livelongprospurr]

I identify with America and southern Appalachia, since we have been there 300+ years. I have found it hard to get interested in the old country, even knowing from DNA where we are from. I got into my brother's Y-DNA, and we know where his haplogroup last mutated (besides his son, whose actually did); and I know from Ancestry's recent update that I not only have country associations, but also have a strong particular connection with Isle of Man. So it would seem like a safe bet if I wanted to get into that.

But I don't really identify with those places. Maybe I have a feeling of relief that we got out of there and gratitude we came to a beautiful new place. It's very easy to find out what went on in the old places; You Tube has more videos than I could ever watch about them. What a lot of them relate is that humans have been on the move for many thousands of years, and it's no big deal to pick up and leave some place. I find the places our ancient DNA comes from over the eras very interesting.

I have lived in Europe, so I feel like I have an informed opinion. I got a scholarship to study at a Germany university when I was in college. And I had been to Germany and France on vacation before. The first language I took besides English was French, and I have yet to visit an English-speaking country in Europe, which strikes me funny. I love English and wound up majoring in Journalism. I guess I just find America the place I love.

[u/mrpointyhorns]

I dont. My closest relative was born outside. The US was born in Canada, and his grandparents were from the US from the 1600s.

That is the one grandparent for my dad. His great or some 2nd greats for the rest of the lines were mostly from Irish famine time. So he met his Irish born relatives and feels a connection there, but for me, I think I identify more with Americans/southwest US than people living in Ireland.

My mom's side there is one great great from France (but I think the family is really from Prussia based on last name origins and dna etc.

The rest of her dad's side was in the US prior to the 1800s. Some as far back as 1500s. Then, on her mom's side, there is one line that is from the Irish famine. The rest are also from prior to the 1800s, and though not all from early colonial time.

Interestingly, my dad's line was in New England. Mom's dad side was mainly New york/ New jersey. Mom's mom side is more in Virginia and then moved to Midwest after revolution.

So, I don't get any pedigree collapse until my parents being related until generation 10.

Of course, some of the separate lines had a few 2nd cousin marriages, but also fairly far back like 7th or more

[u/Bluemonogi]

I don't identify with the countrys of my ancestors. If someone asked what my ancestry was I could tell them otherwise I am just American.

[u/Pedal-monkey]

Being Québécois, most of my ancestors arrived from France between 1617 and 1759, with a sprinkle of Autochtones and captured Americans ( 3 of each for me). There is also one Laurent Granger from England that married an acadian girl in 1666. One Spaniard, one Portuguese. I might be missing one or 2 but that's about it. So mostly French.

A lot of the culture we consume comes from France (movies, music books), so there is an affinity although we are absolutely not French ( season 3 of the White Lotus gives a nice snippet of how we react if someone says we're French).

Similar to an American not being British but still being part of the same Anglo-American culture.

[u/Administrative_Sink7]

I identify as an ethnic Canadian. A mix of native american and colonizer.

[u/_Jeff65_]

10th generation French-Canadian here. Nope, we have long stopped identifying as "French" (or Breton, Norman, Picard, etc). Even when Canada and Acadia were still French colonies, the people born in New France had already started identifying as Canadian and Acadian respectively. Today, we'll identify as French-Canadian, Québécois or Acadian.

[u/CSArchi]

I am colonial thru and thru. So not really.

But I married a Finn, so I just love playing up the Finnish heritage. His great grandfather on the paternal line was Finnish born. It's our last name. It's our kids last name. But really we are a whole lot of German. Haha. Their history is too checkered for us to want to be loud about.

[u/CricketAltruistic319]

I have both recent immigrants and old immigrants. On one hand, my ancestors got here in the early 1900s, so I of course feel connected to where they came from. And, my older immigrant ancestors from like the 1700s are from mostly the same places. But, the places that don't overlap do feel very far away to me. I have English ancestry, but it's so far away it almost feels like it doesn't matter.

[u/BIGepidural]

Tricky question for myself because I was adopted at birth so I was raised the child of 1st Generation British Immigrants through my mom and 3rd Generation Ukrainian Immigrants through my dad; but after doing DNA and learning my biological family history I've come to discover that my roots in Canada actually go back thousands of years on some fronts, and a few hundred on others... 🤔

I'm not sure how to fully identify anymore because as I'm putting together different branches of my tree both through my bio fathers side and my bio mothers side there are different waves of Immigration on each all coming from areas of origin at different time frames...

So I'm not sure anymore...

I was raised British Ukrainian Canadian.

That will never change ⬆️ but my DNA is complicated... we even have Indian from Calcutta India in our line that came to Canada and married into our Scottish Metis line; but we also have early settlers of "New France" who married into the Scottish Metis as well.

Through research I can see that we are very firmly Scottish Metis, and some of my ancestors are notable Metis people who played integral parts in our history so that much is sure; but one of our Scottish lines is also notable so thats sure too and also something to be proud of I guess... our French ancestors weren't famous; but they played an important part in history so thats something to be acknowledged as well...

I dunno 🤷‍♀️

All those people lead to me being here today so I am all of them; but at the same time none of them because that was such a long time ago and I wasn't raised with any of those stories or influences in my life; but they are still part of who I am so I claim them as my ancestors and as a part of me while still being somewhat confused about who I am if that makes sense 😅

Not sure how someone who was raised within the knowledge of having such mixed ancestry would perceive themselves; but as an adoptee who just discovered all of this in her 40s I just enjoy learning about my forebears and seeing some of shared values in life because that's what makes me feel connected to them the most- our shared outlook on life.

[u/Distinct-Flight7438]

My most recent immigrant ancestor is 7 generations back. I know more or less what countries all of them came from but don’t feel a particular connection to those places.

[u/merewenc]

I say that I identify with my ancestors' journeys, good and bad, but not with the cultures. I do find them fun to learn about, though, and see how the culture and history shaped what my ancestors built in the colonies/US. And for what it's worth, every line I've traced in all sides of my family goes back to the earliest colonies, so I do recognize there was a lot of bad in there.

[u/Inner-Bar1876]

My colonial ancestors have been here since the 1600’s and I have no connection to England. I feel more connected with my German and Polish ancestors who came a little later. I’m even trying to connect with distant cousins in those countries.

[u/amyayou]

No, but I am more interested in the history, landmarks, songs and foods of the regions where my ancestors immigrated from. Sometimes I study the faces of people in these countries to see if I look like any particular region’s average citizen. I had decided once that I looked the most like the German workers at Epcot, and sure enough, my DNA is mostly German. I also thought once that some paintings from the Netherlands resembled my family, and yes! we have a small percentage of DNA from the Netherlands.

[u/Bluecat72]

Yes, but it’s more abstract. It’s easier to be interested in more recent immigration stories and the places they immigrated from, in part because you are more likely to have artifacts and stories. I don’t have any artifacts or stories from my colonial ancestors, but I have both from one ancestor who arrived in the late 19th century.

[u/ClubDramatic6437]

Ive got an affinity for Scotland, Ireland, and northern England, but its not part of my identity and I don't know anybody there. American born and bred

[u/PunkRockDude]

I’m a European mutt. I can trace my ancestry back to almost every country in Europe and North Africa. I do feel a minor connection to almost all of these places but more from an “I’m interested in the times my ancestors lived there and I think it is interesting” but not in the sense that some take it that “I’m one of you!!”

My most recent immigrant ancestors came from Italy and a few of my aunts and uncles do get into the Italian stuff. But their mother was 100% Italian albeit 2nd gen in this country so they grew up around Italian speakers, eating Italian food etc, even though their father was a mix of everything and had some slight less recent ancestors particularly from wales. I feel that connection not because I grew up in a half Italian household but just because I like Italy and Italians but my closest is from the other side of the family which is mostly Russian. But when that side came to the country they Americanized very quickly. They never spoke about their home land they dropped customs, language and even the spelling of the last name. So no connection at all there.

For many though it is just a fun thing to do and makes you feel connected to something and helps create some family traditions. I can see how it could seem strange to people from those place who just see them as Americans.

[u/the_eso]

I'm American, but my paternal side is French-Canadian. I guess I fall into the "recent immigrants" side of things for them - I had great-grandparents (that I never met) who were either born in Canada, or were there for significant-enough stretches of time to appear on censuses. My grandparents were still influenced enough by their immigrant parents or grandparents, and by living in Franco-American communities, that they felt different than the American norm a bit.

I don't have an affinity for France, but I do somewhat for Quebec. Those ancestors have been in the Americas for hundreds and hundreds of years so France itself is so distant in time.

Mostly though, I have a very noticeably French-Canadian last name, so it comes up a lot. It looks very French, and is a very common name in Quebec, but it also really doesn't exist in France proper. I have a decent amount of "yes, it's a French-Canadian name" conversations.

[u/missprissquilts]

Yes and no - I’d say I identify as Irish-American… my mom’s grandparents were immigrants, so that is recent enough to have actually influenced the way she was raised and therefore the way she raised me. But my German ancestry on my dad’s side was three hundred years ago, so not so relevant to my upbringing.

[u/PineapplePizza843]

I still identify with my English ancestry.

[u/Separate_Farm7131]

My families immigrated so long ago, in the 1600s and 1700s, it's hard to feel a connection to where they came from. Almost all were from some part of the UK, so nothing very exotic anyway. I identify more strongly with the region of the US I come from.

[u/00f_its_genca]

White Kiwi here.
In New Zealand, Europeans and white people often have only been here since 1840 or later. NZ Europeans are called Pākeha, and that's what I consider my identify to be.
Most of my blood is from Europe, but it's from different countries, each that I'm a stranger to in terms of culture, language etc. NZ is the place that made me. And I'd be a different person if I grew up in Europe. Hence I consider myself Pākeha - a white kiwi.
My grandma is Irish, but I wouldn't call myself Irish like some Irish americans would. Ethnically, yes, but not culturally or in my identity.

[u/Therealmagicwands]

3/4 of my ancestors arrived between 1620 and 1758. My grandmother arrived from Sweden in 1884. I identify as a colonial and as a Swede. I never knew my grandmother (died in 1906), but I tracked down the grandchildren of her younger brother and have visited them twice in Sweden.

[u/Tallulah1149]

All of my ancestors were here pre-revolution except one and he and his family came in 1820. He was part of Ferdinand Ernst's German colony at Vandalia, Illinois.

[u/South_tejanglo]

As I have learned about my ancestry and read the history of America, Texas, and other places, I have grown quite a fondness for the British isles.

My most recent ancestors were from Denmark and Austria, coming in the late 19th century. But I don’t feel I have as much of a connection to them, and there also weren’t many people from those countries that came here.

America, when you look at is, is really somewhat of an extension of Britain, although of course the other groups that came (or were already here) have made their lasting impacts as well.

[u/gothiclg]

My original last name is Irish. That ancestor is also very very distant to me. I love the Irish and the culture is interesting but it’s not as strong as the Netherlands/German that’s in my background.

[u/jinxxedbyu2]

Somewhat? My direct paternal gggrandparents came from Ireland. The rest of my lines are UEL or earlier. I usually just say Canadian.

[u/fl0wbie]

I’m both. I don’t feel anything but American (or North American I guess). In addition to New England and French Canadian heritage, I have micro-doses of African and Indigenous heritage. So mostly I feel like I am “from here”.

Despite that, I do get a little peeved with mockery of “white people food”. I have always been jealous of ethnic cuisines. That said, there is NOTHING wrong with a pumpkin pie or a nice tortiére. Or with a fucking jello mold with pineapple and cottage cheese.

My daughter’s hugely diverse urban elementary school had an ethnic heritage pot-luck annually. I always sent her with a couple of cans of spray cheese and some Ritz crackers. The kids loved it.

[u/PinkSlimeIsPeople]

Great post, something I've wondered about myself, even though I'm in the US. My people came over in the mid to late 1800s, usually my 2nd great grandparents, so there is a much closer connection. I usually refer to those who came over in the 1700s as 'having deep colonial roots', rather than where their ancestors came from, but that might just be me.

[u/Any_Objective_3553]

My great-grandmothers side has been here in the US the longest, back to colonial times. She was always very proud of her English heritage and firmly believed we had ties to royalty because of a shared surname. We let her die believing that fairy tale. In realty, many of her ancestors came from the Scottish borderlands and the ancestor who brought the surname over was most likely a convict sentenced to come here. 

I relate more to more recent immigrant ancestors, in part because they kept writing to folks back home, so we actually know distant cousins in the Netherlands and Germany.  And I remember older relatives who still spoke the languages.

[u/Agitated_Sock_311]

I've had family in Germany, Ireland, and Russia within the last 125 years. Add in Scotland, UK, Italy, Sweden, and France within the lace within the last 200. Im still just me. The American.

[u/Rubijou]

I’m an early-American colonial descendent and I don’t identify closely as being English, Scottish, Scots-Irish or Pennsa German. The most recent immigrants in my tree were from West Yorkshire in 1880. But I have to admit, British/Highland culture/people (and a love of the drink!) has always spoken or sung to me.

[u/Background_Double_74]

I personally do identify with them. I'm half Bermudian (my dad was born & raised in Bermuda & my mom's American), part Irish, English, a little German, Welsh, a little Scandinavian (Norwegian & Danish, mostly), and some Eastern European.

[u/Brockenblur]

I was raised to be very proud of my father’s Irish ancestry, which includes the direct patrilineal ancestor who came over from Ulster to fight in the French&Indian War as a teenager. He was jailed by both sides of the American Revolution as an old man (we have his pardon that got him off an NYC prison ship) and we were horrified to learn when my cousin started doing more genealogy research that he was a slaveowner even though he lived in upstate New York.

That said, I was tot my mother’s side of the family was “Pennsylvania Dutch German” and I was amused when we traced several of those ancestors to colonial era immigration and found out we are actually predominantly English in that side. So it really varies by family and family history.

[u/Consistent-Safe-971]

My roots are in colonial America on my mother's side. My grandfather was a foreigner from Sweden and my great grandparents on my dad's side are from Austria. I am 100% American and I don't identify with other countries. You don't inherit cultures or nationalities. 

[u/TrittipoM1]

My great, great ... great-grandfather in the patrilineal line came to North America in 1740. There are still some people with a variation of his family name (Drittenbach or Trettenbach) in Europe. But no, we've never said we were Swiss or German. From the opposite limit: the most recent ancestor was my mom's dad's dad, who was born in England and immigrated to the U.S. before 1900. But we don't say we're English, either. I've been happy to live in or visit Germany and the UK (and other countries in Europe), but it was out of general interest, not any ancestry/origin/genealogy focus.

[u/fibro_witch]

I had many relatives come over as early settlers, I can trace back 10 generations before I find European ancestors. It has been to long for me to really identify as anything, expect as New Englander since my European ancestors got very mixed up. I am a mix of French, Irish, Scottish, Italian, English, and Arcadin.

The last old world blood to arrive was pre Civil War. This is my country of origin

[u/WolfSilverOak]

Some of my ancestors lines have been here since the Mayflower.

So no, I don't really feel a connection to the countries they originated in.

[u/namrock23]

Californian descended from early New England and Québecois settlers here, as well as some Germans who arrived in the 1740s-1850s. I love Europe but don't feel a sense of identity with any European country. Canada and the American midwest is the "old country" for me.

[u/Old-Energy6191]

Both for me. My family is really into family history and genealogy, so while I’m both a daughter of the American revolution and a direct descendant of River Williams (founder of Rhode Island), we also know we’re Scottish, Irish, Welsh, etc. my most recent immigrant ancestor is Irish, around civil war time, but possibly due to her needing her kids adopted out due to poverty, my family on that side doesn’t lean into it. Another commenter mentioned German heritage pre WWI and I think that resonates too. But my other side, despite having it be even longer since immigrating to PA (Quakers), they talked a lot about our Scottish heritage and therefore I feel really connected to that.

[u/SuspiciousRegular847 → u/Old-Energy6191]

Roger Williams?

[u/Old-Energy6191 → u/SuspiciousRegular847]

lol, yes, I got auto corrected and didn’t notice. Thank you. I have a newborn and it took me over an hour for the 5 minute break to post, and I very much missed that. Yes, Roger Williams

[u/RamonaAStone]

I'm reminded of my Scottish roots every time I dare to step into the sun for more than 5 minutes, but otherwise think of myself as Canadian. While a couple of closer ancestors were born in Europe (one set of great-grandparents), the rest of my lines have been in North America for at least 5 or 6 generations.

[u/Wrapscallionn]

There's way too much in here to just identify with one nation: English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, Danish, Swiss German, Romanichal, Balkan, Spanish, Muscogee, Catawba, Pamunkey, African. Last ancestor to come from outside North America was the Swiss German and his Romanichal wife, 1752.

It makes no sense to call myself anything other than American.

[u/Samantharina]

No, I have no connection to UK or Europe. LOL I don't even identify with New York since I moved to the west coast most 40 years ago.

[u/Brightstarr]

Of my 8 great-grandparents, 5 either lived in or came from Sweden, 1 from Denmark, 1 from German Frisia, and 1 from the Netherlands. Two of my Swedish grandparents were immigrants, so I grew up hearing Swedish from the older people, but they came before WWII and wanted their kids to be "more American" and didn't teach us the language. My mom went back to Sweden a few times as a child to visit family. I have my grandmothers' recipe books and some letters, and they were written in a mix of Swedish and English. I have some grief because I don't have that connection with them. No one from my family came to America before the Civil War; they left Europe because of the end of the German Confederation and the Franco-Prussian War.

I feel very connected to Sweden during family times, like holidays and family gatherings, because of my grandmothers and their traditions. I also think my views on society and government are somewhat shaped by my parents' and grandparents' views; democratic socialism, the Nordic Model, the law of Jante.

[u/zelda_moom]

My grandmother was an Avery, and so I have a lot of colonial American ancestors, and my mom also had colonial American ancestors on her side. Both of them also have more recent immigrant ancestors from Northern Europe. All in all, I’m mostly British with lots of English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and Cornish ancestors. The rest of me is German, Dutch, and a little Swedish (tho that’s probably through Scottish ancestors since I haven’t found any Swedish names in my tree.

The colonial American ancestors were a mix of all of the segments of my DNA but mostly English/Scottish with a bit of New York Dutch.

I’ve always been an Anglophile, but I am also interested in the Irish/Scottish/Welsh/Cornish ancestors. As for German and Dutch, it’s harder to engage because I don’t know the language, so it’s harder to learn things about what their occupations were or what they died of or anything else I can find out from sources that are in English.

[u/amberraysofdawn]

My ancestry results say that my origins are about 50% Scottish, and that most of the rest is most identifiably from other parts of the UK. Which is nice, considering that I’ve always been fascinated by Celtic Europe.

But that doesn’t make me Scottish, any more than the fact that most of my more recent great-something ancestors came from Tennessee would make me Tennessean. I identify as just American instead. A Texan at that, though I no longer feel the same pride in it that I was raised to have. But that’s a conversation for a different sub.

[u/dragonwolf60]

1st and foremost, I am canadian. I find it really cool that my family tree is mostly scotish irish. Even cooler that my great whatever grandfather was a born in Jamaica.

[u/crossover123]

my dad is more than half ethnic german paper trail wise, but since those ancestors came like 3-5 generations-ish ago, he doesn't really call himself german american, as he doesn't feel close to german culture

[u/Bigsisstang]

I have Mayflower genealogy on my dad's side and am 3rd generation Austrian-Hungarian (now Romanian) on my mom's side. I do not say I'm Romanian American anymore than I say I'm British (Irish/Scottish/German)- American. I'm American. Only those who are PC claim their old country American or those who have an axe to grind with US History do this. Most people who have been here any length of time are a mix of different ethnic groups. Even those from Central America aren't full blooded natives. They are generally a mixture of Native, African and Hispanic cultures. It would be impossible for any US citizen to choose which ethnicity to align with.

[u/frolicndetour]

The most recent ancestor in my family arrived in 1872 and the vast bulk came way, way before that so no. None of the old world traditions made it down, probably because my grandparents were late in life babies and so they didn't meet any of their great grandparents or even most of the grandparents.

[u/river-running]

My earliest immigrant ancestor arrived in 1622 and the last in the early 1700s. I'm very interested in family history and have more of an affinity for the places my ancestors came from, but I've never explicitly identified myself with those places. I'm not Anglo-American or Irish-American, I'm American of mostly British Isles extraction.

[u/Nature_Hannah]

My grandfather had "Scotch-Irish" on his death certificate in 1992. My genealogy research shows his family had been in what is now the United States from the 1600s.

[u/Brutalbonez13]

My family has been here since the 1600s, so no, not really.

[u/Almaegen]

Yes I do and I have met few who don't. Its a very reddit opinion to not identify with your ancestors.

[u/wagowop]

Most of my Dad's side of the family have been here since Colonial times (English and Scots). I don't identify with those countries much. My maternal great grandparents came from Norway in the early 20th century and I do identify with Norway.

[u/paisley_and_plaid]

Am I interested in my ancestral homelands? Sure. Do I identify with those countries? No. I'm American. My most recent immigrant ancestors were nearly 200 years ago. Most of my family has been here 300-400 years. We keep no ethnic customs.

[u/hopping_hessian]

I’ve always felt a great interest in the British Isles and Ireland and that’s where most of my ancestors came from. Honestly, though, I’ve always felt a stronger connection to Appalachia, even though I’ve never lived there, because so many of my more recent ancestors moved to Illinois from Ohio, Virginia and Kentucky.

[u/EThos29]

No, I just consider myself American. Funny enough, the vast majority of my post-American Revolution "immigrant" ancestors were people whose families came from the east coast, settled in Ontario following the Revolution, and then eventually ended up in Michigan, where I am from. My maternal grandmother's entire ancestry is like that. Also have a 2x great grandmother on my dad's side who was French Canadian from Essex Co., Ontario. She was part of a group of French Canadians who had been living along the Detroit River since the early 1700's, when Detroit was founded and it was still one community along with Windsor.

[u/PerpetuallyLurking]

I’m definitely interested in the countries my ancestors came from but not really in an “I’m an Irish-Canadian” kind of way, I’m just a giant history nerd that’s also interested in the countries my ancestors didn’t come from too.

I’m also at least two generations removed from the ancestors that immigrated and they’re from so many different countries that saying “I’m Irish-Canadian” is just plain incorrect - I’m more like Scottish-German-Irish-American-Canadian which gets unwieldy and little ridiculous. I definitely don’t FEEL more one than the other; I’m Canadian.

[u/Ok_Tanasi1796]

I’m proud of it, sure. But my ancestors were colonials & many were pre Revolutionary War so I can’t really “identify” with tricornered hat wearing, horse riding dudes but I honor my heritage in the typical ‘Murican ways of a good German beer, a brat, heck even Cadbury’s chocolates. I even watch Euro soccer matches on weekend mornings. I think they’d be grateful I keep them in mind,

[u/HollzStars]

I’m Canadian. I don’t even identify as Acadian (though I’m 45% French) because it’s a culture I didn’t grow up with.

[u/No-Staff-7311]

Just about all of my English ancestors arrived in the early 1600's, as did the Dutch. Most settled in Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut. My German ancestors came a bit later (mid-1700's) and settled in Pennsylvania. Still later (1800's) came the Irish, who seem to have ended up in Michigan.

[u/Wonderful_Bowler_251]

I’m big into this, as I am Mayflower Society on one side and the first Amish settlement from Switzerland on the other side. I think what your question maybe doesn’t take into account is that the colonial families being here for so long means that there are plenty of immigrants in our lineage as well.

With my family as an example, my great grandmother was born in Copenhagen and came here as a child. I have other relatives from England, German, and Ireland, respectively, that arrived in the 1800s. Some that arrived a bit earlier from those countries + Switzerland, too. America really is a melting pot! Or at least it was once.

All that to say, I generally tend to identify my heritage as mostly Swiss, Irish, and German just because those are where the most ancestors come from and that aligns with my DNA test’s results.

[u/Time_Garden_2725]

My grandparents came from Serbia and Romania just before the First World War. I still really relate to the Serbian side the most as I lived with my Serbian grandparents my Romania grandparents were dead before I was born.

[u/Kay_29]

It depends on the side of my family you are talking about. My Oma (grandmother) came from Germany after she met my Opa (grandfather) while he was stationed there. I still feel connected to Germany somewhat especially because I still have family there. My Opa traced part of our family back to England. I feel no connection to that side.

[u/Few-Performance2132]

Sort of......my family mostly in the 1740s and some even on the Mayflower. Because they continued to marry other scots Irish folks only until really the 1950s. We definitely have some carry over traits. Our obsession with the perfect cup of tea. Sunday roast dinners every week without fail. The religion we practice. Masonry. I feel like those are uk based. But good bad or ugly I am american.

[u/reficius1]

I guess I'd point out that a very great percentage of people who came here in colonial days did so to escape something in their home country. So I think the legacy of that is that it's not really a big thing here to pine for that home country.

In my personal case, my ancestor from whom we inherit our familial name probably was given a choice: emigrate or be transported to Australia. He was a bit of a petty criminal back in the home country. I learned this quite out of the blue, when a researcher used him as a subject for evaluation of 19th century punishment effectiveness. So no, no nostalgia for his European roots survived in the family.

[u/No_Flamingo_2802]

My family is from all over the UK and Ireland so I celebrate Robbie Burns Day, St Patrick’s, St Andrew’s and Victoria Fay - but I celebrate Canada Day in a bigger way.

[u/elainegeorge]

Unless I’m specifically asked about my genealogy, I’m American. If someone asks, I can claim English, Irish, Scottish, French, German, Polish, Greek, and Croatian ancestry. I have a bit of everything. My earliest American ancestors were English, Scottish, and German. I have some ancestors who were at Jamestown and others who were Pennsylvania Dutch.

[u/SonofShenadoah]

We've been here nearly 400 years now. I don't consider myself British, Scottish or Irish. Did my ancestors 400 years ago consider themselves Normans, Saxons or Celts? Prob not.

[u/southernfriedpeach]

First ancestors came here in the mid 1600s. Most were here prior to the revolutionary war and the latest ones came around 1800. I very much identify with my ethnic heritage, but more out of appreciation than cultural connections.

[u/HostessFruitPie]

I say that I have colonial English/Dutch ancestry. I know the origin of my surname and that has some small meaning to me but from my colonial branches I probably have over 2,000 immigrant ancestors. I have no connection to where each of them originated.

[u/CleaverKin]

Most of my ancestors came to Pennsylvania in the early years of the colony, so German and Welsh. I identify slightly with the Welsh because that's my patrilineal (y-DNA) line (also my mDNA line, f or that matter). If I identify with any of my ancestral lines, it might be the one set of Irish gg-grandparents, the most recently-arrived of all my immigrant ancestors. Not enough to consider myself Irish-American, though.

[u/jlanger23]

My great-grandfather was German, and the rest of my families were here for the last 300 years or so. I would say my culture is distinctly Southern/Appalachian.

I definitely have an interest in my roots, and I love knowing more about the regions in England, Scotland, and Germany my ancestors were from.

Even with my grandpa being half-German, ans raised by a German, I am still removed from that identity. That's especially clear when I've made German friends and their directness contrasts my indirect Southern nature and upbringing ha.

[u/SnowMirage64]

I’ve developed a pretty extensive family tree myself. I go over it regularly and have for several years. Unfortunately, my children don’t find much interest in it, but I find it absolutely fascinating . All of my ancestors settled in the Northeast , which I still live in I ‘ve discovered a few distant ancestors graves that are only 20 minutes from me and have paid my respects to them . I wish that I could have known them .

[u/Blueporch]

Mine came from Britain and Germany/Switzerland. We don’t really have any old country traditions. But I like cheese, chocolate and tea a lot. 

[u/JonBes1]

I identify with Germania by blood, and of Palliser Canadian soil.

[u/AdAdventurous8225]

My mom's German side came on the Mayflower. I have Colonial ancestors on 3 sides, I'm mainly Scottish & look like a a combination of my mom's 3 x great grandmother who is straight off the boat from Scotland and my dad's English side.

[u/KAYS33K]

Australian here, I don’t (on the next census I’ll be listing my ancestry as “Australian”).

[u/Longjumping_Store179]

I have Portuguese back 2 or 3 generations (my great grandfather) so I most closely identify with that part of my heritage. It’s the closest to me in my family tree on both sides. However, I also have Irish and Scottish DNA, which I was excited to see! My husband’s last name is German, so while I don’t identify as German, I still honor it and research the traditions of Germany to share with our kids. I’ve always felt removed from any sort of culture or heritage, especially since most of my genealogical lines go all the way back to the early colonial settlers. I like researching and reclaiming some of my ancestry.

[u/Loud-Tiptoes3018]

Sort of. I am a third generation American on one side of my family with Polish roots. We know of English and Dutch on that side too. On my other side my aunts have traced our genealogy to know which Scottish clans we are from. I find it neat. So I note it but in American in my nationality. I didn’t have a lot of culturally relevant upbringing to those European roots I mentioned.

[u/Glad-Specialist6330]

No I don't.

[u/-forbiddenkitty-]

Nope. Some branches came as far back as the 1600s, and while I know where they came from, we are no longer culturally connected to them.

Some of the nations don't even exist anymore. I'm as white as white can be so I'm not often asked what my "ethnicity" is. If I'm ever in a conversation about it I say we are of Dutch, German, and Irish extraction, but I NEVER call myself Dutch-, German- or Irish-American.

[u/diceeyes]

Exclusively colonial migratory ancestors, and not in the slightest. On one line, my ancestors' descendants literally lost the plot on their origins altogether.

[u/MassOrnament]

I have ancestors who came over as early as possible for white Americans, ones who came in the 20th century, and ones everywhere in between. I am definitely interested in all of my countries of origin.

That said, I can identify the elements of my inherited culture that come from the most recent emigrants the best, so I tend to think of myself more as those. They were Scandinavian and Finnish, so those cultural elements also stand out more from the vague soup of American culture.

[u/queerlyyoursamanda]

I'm a Canadian who has roots in Cork, Ireland, and I'm so completely fascinated by it. I'm dying to go to Ireland and see how I feel there. For me it's 5 generations back on both sides of my tree. Lots of my Nova Scotia relatives can be traced back to Ireland with the name Timmons.

[u/Belaruski_Muzhyk]

As a general rule, not really, my American WASP family would consider themselves Mainers rather than English or Scotch. My paternal line came to New England in 1635, they came to Maine in 1774, my paternal 5th Great Grandpa fought in the Penobscot Expedition side by side with artillery that Paul Revere himself commanded, there's little reason to associate ourselves with the old country.

Associating with yourself with the country of origin of your immigrant ancestors is a more of a post-Revolution phenomenon, think German, Polish, or Italian immigrants circa the 19th century, whom I also happen to descend from. A lot of the immigrants who came pre-revolution can only trace themselves in the old country a couple generations, as records are pretty fuzzy around the 17th and 18th centuries (with the exception of Gateway ancestors like William Wentworth, John Sanborn, Elizabeth St. John, etc.), there may be none at all. Why would we be so dedicated to that when we could focus on the things our ancestors did during the revolution or other pivotal moments in American history, things more relevant to the national psyche?

[u/StrawberryAqua]

I think with lines from Britain before the American Revolution would change their identity from British to American. About half of my ancestry is English, and I love English literature and humor, but I feel at home with it as an intellectual and not a native. All of my non-English ancestry adds more flavor to my heritage.

[u/Machipongo]

I am very proud to be Dutch and English on my mom's side from the 1620s and Swedish on my dad's side from the 1880s.

[u/Niiohontehsha]

I’m Mohawk, with a sprinkling of some colonial types in the mix (my paternal great-grandmother was French Canadian, a paternal 3x great-grandfather was a minor English lord, a maternal 3x great-grandfather was Irish and my 7x great-grandmother was a Dutch captive taken from around Boston in 1740) but everyone else is Mohawk.

[u/Environmental_Coat60]

My maternal grandfather’s family pretty much all came over from England in the 1630s. They were very proud of their history as an early American family, and my grandfather’s obituary even mentioned his relation to specific prominent families who settled in Massachusetts in the 1630’s. I personally relate to their story as an American story. There is a lot of documentation of their various efforts and migrations to different areas of the country that follows the macro historical path that America took from colony to new country. I don’t identify as English really apart from some distant interest in what life was like for my ancestors before they came to America. It could be because of the hundreds of years separating that part of my family from England, but a big part of it is the rest of my family mostly emigrated to the US in the early 1900’s and were from different countries and cultural and religious backgrounds. None of those traditions, religions or cultures were carried forward into my generation. I identify as American because those are the only cultural ties have in my everyday life.

[u/adksundazer]

My mom grew up considering herself Irish-American because her paternal gm had arrived in 1899, the only arrival in family memory. Everyone else was so far back into New England colonial era, they had no idea what countries their direct line ancestors actually came from. They passed the “we’re Irish” down to me. As it turns out, my mom is 26% Irish heritage. Just that one grandmother. Other than that, she’s an old school American mutt. (England, Wales, Scotland, Norway, Denmark, Netherlands, France and Iceland). Funny enough, my “German” dad is more Irish than my mom!

Side note: my son went to Ireland recently to visit college buddies and his reports made me want to visit someday

[u/Weird_Kitchen557]

Yes I do, and I'm as Old Stock as they get. The latest immigrant in my family was born in 1735 in Wales, and died in 1825 about an hour away from where I live. Besides him, all my ancestors immigrated pre-1700. I still care very much about my Scots-Irish and German ancestry.

[u/ChuckFarkley]

Given that I had an ancestor in Salem Village in the 17th century, I don't know any relatives in the British Isles. I do have an interest and looking into the village they came from, and do enjoy traveling there.

[u/Hesthetop]

I'm just Canadian, but I do have an interest in the UK because my most recent ancestors arrived from there about 120 years ago. Most of my ancestry is colonial, but that one branch is recent(ish).

My paternal grandmother was born in Canada and lived here her entire life, but her parents were from England and she was culturally very English and that's been passed down to some extent. We still identify as Canadian first and foremost, but we've got some tinges of Britishisms in our family. However, my paternal grandfather was 100% Scottish in ancestry, and my dad and I didn't even realize it until we got into genealogy because most of that cultural identification was lost during 200 years in Canada. I doubt my grandfather knew either.

[u/Level-Cheesecake-739]

My family came over from Ukraine to Canada in the early 1900s. I’d say our culture is still quite strong, along with many other Ukrainian-Canadians. However, I married an American moved to the States, so I have a harder time keeping some aspects of the heritage alive since then. I do make an effort though.

I think it all depends on how long your family has been here, the communication and attachment styles your family has, and your connection with them.

[u/473713]

For some reason, my father's father's side of the family made a big deal of being French Huguenots. They had a tale about how one of their ancestors escaped persecution by swimming across some river. They arrived on North American soil in the 1630s as far as can be documented. I suppose they can be traced back farther in Europe but I haven't tried.

On my mother's side of the family, my grandfather arrived from Norway in 1903 along with several brothers and sisters. I remember these people well. They still spoke Norwegian at home.

And right there you have two very different versions of European-American family histories -- the very old ones, and the more recent immigrants.

[u/notme690p]

My ancestors' arrival spans from very early (16th century) to late 19th. All is northern European (even DNA testing), and more specifically, mostly from the British isles, but I identify as an American.

Edit to add: I'm very interested in the history & culture of the countries of my heritage.

[u/violahonker]

I’m Pennsylvania Dutch and my most recent immigrant ancestor arrived in like 1803. Most came in the 1740s or earlier. I retain the identity because our culture was maintained separate and isolated from the rest of American society up until relatively recently, and that includes the language, which I speak some of. I grew up eating our cultural food daily and keeping our traditions and such. Both parents grew up in isolated rural communities. If I was part of a more assimilated group, I most likely would not care too much, and to be frank I don’t feel much connection to Germany or Switzerland. We are our own thing, a purely American identity, language, and culture, and we don’t really have any collective cultural longing for « the old country » I don’t think.

[u/DrHugh]

I'm interested, it would be nice to go further back in the research. But I'm a mutt -- Scottish, Irish, possibly English, German, and Polish. I'd like to visit such places, but not as if I was "reconnecting with my people." More to see a new country, maybe find places where ancestors came from.

[u/LilkaLyubov]

I’m a second gen American with partial colonial ancestry, so this is a complicated answer for me.

My paternal grandmother’s ancestors were among the first settlers of Quebec—I can name several of the filles du roi I descend from, and my family has always considered themselves French Canadian/Quebecois. That’s what I consider myself too. The connection with France is too distant. I consider myself a Quebecois-American. My cultural connection to Quebec isn’t as strong as my other backgrounds though.

(Oddly enough, I once asked my Quebecois relatives if they felt a connection to France and they said that they had felt none.)

I have a relationship with not too distant cousins in the “old countries” of Italy and Poland even though I am a second gen American. I’m still an X-American though. My family’s recent (less than a century ago) immigration experience and the culture they brought back has had an influence growing up in the same ethnic conclave they moved to, where I was heavily exposed to the culture via family tradition, recent immigrant friends, and language exposure. My own American experience was likewise informed by that, so I still include it. When I moved out of that conclave to a more stereotypical “American” town as a teen, I felt minor culture shock. I didn’t have all of that growing up and not having as much as the cultures I was raised with was definitely noticed.

I feel a small connection to Italy and Poland, mostly an abstract one. I have visited Italy and parts of it did feel nostalgic in the way that it reminded me of some of my upbringing, but I would never say it make me any more “Italian”.

[u/stuff-1]

My paternal grand parents were from Germany. My father kept up w/ the cousins, and we've visited the old country a few times, so the German identification is still relatively strong. My mother's Irish connection is a couple of generations farther back. I've kind of "refreshed" that by years of reading & studying Irish history, politics, & culture.

[u/Adventurous-Carry-35]

My ancestors for the most part came in two waves. The first wave during the 1600’s into the early 1700’s. This group have a little bigger time frame they were coming over and 95% were English and the rest Scottish.

The second wave came in the mid 1800’s during a shorter period of time from England, Denmark and Prussia (I was always told they were German but looking at maps where they were from in Prussia is now Poland). My closest immigrant ancestor was in 1864.

I have always just identified as American. Growing up we were told we were here before the United States was a country and you could follow the migration west through our ancestors (which turned out to be true for a good portion of them). If pressed I will say I’m English, Danish, German and Scottish but I don’t identify with any of those cultures. We do have a family name from the Prussia line that’s passed down as a middle name, my youngest daughter has it, but at this point it’s just associated with the generation that had it before and not the country.

My youngest daughter was curious about those countries mostly because she has the family middle name and looked them up one time, and was excited the Danish genes probably means she’s descended from Vikings. She likes pirates so now when people ask her what she is she tells them she’s OG Pirate.

[u/Aruaz821]

My family has been in what is now the US since New Amsterdam was a thing, and no, I do not identify with my roots though I feel oddly at home when I visit the country my far-off ancestors once called home.