The NAME GAME

You're right. I need to edit more often, check facts.

Our friend in China pretty well covers it.

The terms North Americans and South Americans leaves the hemisphere divided, but are commonly used collective terms. Of course, Central Americans are the most important Americans here.

Essentially, IMHO, there are three options:

(1st Option) There is already an adjective or noun referring to the Americás or someone from the Americás and that word according to dictionaries is "American." There are no two separate words to refer to someone from the US and from the Americas. As I've suggested elsewhere, accept the fact that ambiguity is often a fact of life in language. Within the US, if someone says that he or she is from Washington, it may refer to Washington State, Washington, DC, or even Washington,Georgia. Again, I will mention too that Georgia can refer to either the US state or the former Soviet Georgia, and to my knowledge, few people complain about the name "Georgia" in English being used to refer to both. In Europe, only the Greeks seem to have a problem with with ethnic and national linguistic ambiguity with the use of the word "Macedonian." As the speaker (or writer), however, you do have the option of at least attempting to be as unambiguous as possible. It may require more words or even sound a little strange or awkward, but usually you do have the option of being as specific and precise as possible.

(2nd Option) Coin a new (inoffensive) word to refer to someone from the US. Elsewhere I jokingly suggested words like "Unitedstater" (or just "Ustater" or "Usaer." I say jokingly because use of the word "American" to refer to someone from the US is by far the most often intended and entrenched meaning (>90% of the time??). Coining a new term to replace that usage (not only in English but most other languages) is simply not realistic.

(3rd Option) Coin a new word to replace the least used usage, i.e., someone from or an adjective referring to both the Americas. This option is much more viable since this usage is by far the least used and stands a far greater chance of becoming universally adopted by the literati followed by the general public. I will even at this point somewhat seriously suggest using the root word "Americás," to form the new word "Americasian" (a la Eurasian but not to be confused with "Amerasian.") to refer to both continents or to someone from those continents. While this does have the major disadvantage of being confused in English with "Amerasian," (or even with the proposed word "Americasian" to refer to an Asian-American) it would be easily distinguishable in Spanish: "americasano" versus "americano." (And please, no more "ano" jokes! :-) One could even alter the English spelling somewhat to "Americasean" to avoid somewhat the possible confusion with "Amerasian."

Realistically, however, I suspect that one should simply accept the frequent ambiguity of language.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Americasian

O quantum est in rebus inane! / A palabras necias, oídos sordos.

I know the answer! The answer lies within the heart of all mankind! The answer is twelve? I think I'm in the wrong building. - Peanuts (Charles M. Schulz)

Russians in Asia do not think of themselves as Asians and neither do most others......at least not off the top of the head. Likewise for Algerians. Hard to think of them as Africans.

I agree that there is more to america than the USA and am careful to make that distinction. I always thought Mexicans and Canadians would take umbrage with me usurping all of America for the USA. But they don't seem to notice and often do it that way themselves. Down here I use the term NorteAmericano and that works.

So, I think Americans works, mainly for the reasons Daddy-O gave.

ATZ