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Sleuth Admin
Sleuth Admin
Tale Spinner

Apr-23-2004 19:49
(sticky post)


So, looking at the web logs, I know that we have players here from about 30 different countries. I just thought it would be interesting to put somes names with places.

My wife and I live in Boulder, COlorado in the U.S. Where the winter has returned for the weekend. We actually moved here pretty recently from Seattle, which is my home town.


Replies

jstkdn
jstkdn
Well-Connected

May-8-2005 07:21

Well....yes and no, in terms of Holland and The Netherlands. See Holland are actually two provinces of the kingdom of the Netherlands. In the old days, those two provinces were the richest, the most populated, most international trade, and armies and protecten were. Those are the two out of three provinces that are next to the ocean (some people even swim to England, though I do not recommend it. hahah.) So for the international word, when people thought of the kingdom of the Netherlands, they actually always thought about those two Holland provinces (called North Holland and South Holland.) So pretty soon Holland and The Netherlands became inter-exchangeable, or however you say that.
Those two provinces are still around. Amsterdam, is in the province of North Holland. And Rotterdam, with one of the biggest harbours in the world is in the province of South Holland.

I hope no one fell asleep on me.

And.....welcome Marcus!!!!!

jstkdn
jstkdn
Well-Connected

May-8-2005 07:29

And for those Americans that get hassled by Europeans, about some Americans not knowing where all the European countries are.

Ask them this....
1. Point out the state of Wisconsin on a map?
2. Point out the European country Lithuania on a map?

Considering that Holland fits 7 times in the state of Texas. A European should be more then able to point to the state of Texas on a map, over the country of Holland.

And as for languages. Sure, 5 different languages were drilled in to me at a VERY young age. The reason why is, we are a itty bitty country dependend on the outside world and trade.
Americans in my opinion are better off studying other subjects then languages. To them it is as useful as knitting is to us. Pure entertainment and fun.


MarcusAndrew
MarcusAndrew

May-8-2005 08:08

i apologise for my ignorance jstkdn *blushes*. It seems my education was not as complete as i thought it was!

MarcusAndrew
MarcusAndrew

May-8-2005 08:40

And even though my facts weren't entirely correct, it seems that my point was valid nonetheless. Holland is not a country in its own right, so cannot be counted!

jstkdn
jstkdn
Well-Connected

May-8-2005 09:29

Exactly. It is not legally our name.

Blaise Joshua
Blaise Joshua

May-8-2005 16:20

Marcus: Aside from being just a tad pedantic, I think you'll find most people, at least from Britain, would disagree about Wales not being a country.

Ultimately it all comes down to the definition of what a country is, but one definition is "an area distinguished by its people, culture, language or government." It's a little hazy, but it's better than a lot of definitions I've heard. For example, it's been said that if it's a country, it would have it's own seat in the UN, which to me is just about the worst argument possible. If that were the defining matter, then at a stroke England, Scotland and Northern Ireland would all be stripped of their status as being countries.

Wales has a seperate boundary, culture, language and people to England. It has its own National Assembly and heritage. Welsh is a distinct nationality to English and any other. Yes, we might all be British and Wales might not be an independant state, but it's a country in its own right.

As a last challenge (and it really would be the last) to any Englishman that emphatically states that Wales is not a country, I would suggest making your opinion vociferously known in a pub in Cardiff on a Friday night. On seconds thoughts, it would probably better if you didn't ...

MarcusAndrew
MarcusAndrew

May-9-2005 01:05

Hehe! I feel that I must apologise for being a little (perhaps more than that) pedantic. While Sorry for getting off topic - I never intended to be so controversial! *grins* Thanks for your comments though, Blaise and jstkdn! :D

rain3
rain3

May-9-2005 02:19

hii there...i am from singapore;a very small country..my real name is raine.although we are that but all of us are unitied,that's it...don't look down on us because we are small country...we are beautiful,with no natural diasters like others do..

croesy2002
croesy2002

May-9-2005 03:46

Blaise the language argument about Wales is a little weak i'm afraid!!!
go into the same pub in Cardiff and ask them to tell you the numbers up to 10 in Welsh and i think you'll be able to count the ones who can on a blind butcher's hand!!!! (there are more Welsh speakers in South America than the whole of wales)
Also the "Assembly" of Wales receives ALL of it's cash from Westminster and is nothing more than a talking shop for nationalists that MP's in Westminster are glad to see the back of!!!!
Strange as an "independent" state it returns MP's to Westminster as well as having it's own govt but does not allow English MP's to speak in the Assembly!!!! (the West Lothian question)

Blaise Joshua
Blaise Joshua

May-9-2005 04:10

Croesy - my argument wouldn't rest on the language ... there are many areas in the world that have their own language but are not considered countries (Basque region in Spain, for example, though that is again controversial). However, the collective sum of what Wales is, in my opinion (and I state that it is an opinion due to the fact that the defintions of what a country is are so bluured)makes Wales a country and not a region, county, area or whatever else some might call it of Britain.

As a further point, I believe Wales is thought of in many circles as a principality - under the glorious protectorate of the Prince of Wales (typed as a patriotic Briton with a faint grin) ... : o )

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