The term "yank" - how do you feel about it?

That depends who says it.  And more importantly, who has control of the pie! 

 

Really?  How long have you lived in the UK? I have a friend whose English mom has lived in the US for 40 ish years and no one would mistake her accent for American.

Well, since I was about eight months old, actually!

Learnt to talk here, so I developed a British accent. Which was awkward when I moved back to the US when I was 10.

I hate it!  When I've been called that, I've felt as though the person is trying to insult me.  Of course, there are plenty of names you can call people based on where they are from, and to me that's just like a derogatory term based on something like their race.  I don't know why this one is considered 'ok' because to me, it's just the same ...but hey, times always change.  Lots of terms become derogatory over time, so we'll see where this one goes.

Coming from Boston, I would detest being called a "Yankee" 

I lived in the UK for 5 months last summer and trying to get back.  I was called a Yank all the time by my husband's friends.  It never bothered me.  To be honest, I wear the label a bit proudly.  I like being "different" in that way.  I'm proud of being an American despite some things I might not like about my country.  We've all got them.  But, I think it is fine.  However, if someone delivers it in the context of bashing my country, that's a whole other matter. 

I don't mind being called a Yank but DON'T CALL ME A YANKEE!!!  I'm a Philadelphia Phillies fan through and through so any team from NY needs to never be associated with me.  lol

I have never used the term in an insulting way myself personally, always in a friendly way 

For a little bit of interesting history lesson in the term Yankee, it actually originated in New Amsterdam, the Dutch were called Jan Kees which means John Cheese, by the British, Yank-kees is a Dutch pronunciation , after the Dutch were defeated and New Amsterdam became New York, the term stuck, which is why the New York baseball team used Yankee in their name.

so its not New Englander, Northerner or American, its calling somebody a Dutch person !! 

For a little bit of interesting history lesson in the term Yankee, it actually originated in New Amsterdam, the Dutch were called Jan Kees which means John Cheese, by the British, Yank-kees is a Dutch pronunciation , after the Dutch were defeated and New Amsterdam became New York, the term stuck, which is why the New York baseball team used Yankee in their name.

But John Cheese changed his name to "Cleese"!!   

I don't particularly like being called a Yank, but I'm from Texas and I don't believe it makes sense to call me a Yank.  When I first got called a Yank, I informed them that it is usually meant New Englanders, not Texans. Kind of ruined it for them 

Same here! My response is always, "I'm not a Yank - I've never even been to New England!"

It was funny, the first random British person to strike up a conversation with me was an elderly gentleman who asked if I'd seen the bus go past (I hadn't) and then "Oh, you're a Yankee!" which I rolled my eyes at but let pass and he walked me into town while telling me all the racist views on immigration that Men of a Certain Age* seem compelled to share with me** and The Great War and how he knew a lot of good Yanks then - but they kept calling him a Limey and that referred to people from the limestone coast*** and he was from York and how could they have such a lousy grasp of geography. And all I said was: o_O

* I haven't met any Women of a Certain Age
** I related this encounter to my BF's best friend and his response was "I didn't know my father was visiting"
***yes I've heard the limey=limes to fight scurvy but he obviously disagreed

Californians are yankees



American by birth, southern by the grace of God...

I think "yank" has a different connotation to "yankee". "Yank" is what the indigenous inhabitants of the British Isles called the GI arriving on their shores ("Oversexed, overpaid and over here") "Yankee" could refer to those of the damned variety or to anyone reading the magazine of that name.