Why are white people expats - the rest immigrants?

http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/mar/13/white-people-expats-immigrants-migration

Interesting- I refer to myself as an immigrant all the time. I only use expat when talking to Americans back home.

I think the answer is "because the Guardian is up its own bottom."

I'll admit not giving this much thought before, but I'd assumed that the term "expat" was American and referred only to US citizens (of any ethnic background) living abroad.  The first time I heard the term was years ago when I worked preparing tax returns and had several that I was told were for expats and had slightly different rules (of course I don't remember anything about those different rules, and they probably don't exist anymore anyway).  I remember thinking it was slightly derogatory, as if these US citizens were not as patriotic as those who lived in the US. 

"Ex-pat" has nothing to do with patriotism, though I've often seen it used in that context by folks who though it was an abbreviation for "ex-patriot" rather than expatriate. I've even seen it used in what would normally be the proper context, but then spelled out incorrectly.....as "expatriot".

An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country other than that of their citizenship. The word comes from the Latin terms ex ("out of") and patria ("country, fatherland").

I think the answer is "because the Guardian is up its own bottom."

It is a mess. I think they are getting a new editor soon so maybe there is hope.

"Ex-pat" has nothing to do with patriotism, though I've often seen it used in that context by folks who though it was an abbreviation for "ex-patriot" rather than expatriate. I've even seen it used in what would normally be the proper context, but then spelled out incorrectly.....as "expatriot".

An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country other than that of their citizenship. The word comes from the Latin terms ex ("out of") and patria ("country, fatherland").

That is exactly what I'd thought ex-pat to mean, which explains my incorrect assumptions.  Thank you for clarifying. 

Hmmmm, this makes me wonder....

Is someone who holds dual US/UK citizenship, and lives in the UK, still considered an ex-pat?

I don't know the answer to that one, Becca, but as a guess — perhaps as dual US/UK citizens we would be considered American expats because we reside in a country other than our American citizenship.  ? 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I don't know the answer to that one, Becca, but as a guess — perhaps as dual US/UK citizens we would be considered American expats because we reside in a country other than our American citizenship.  ? 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

That sounds likely.... and if dual US/UK citizens are living in the US they are British expats perhaps?  They get you coming and going. 

Perhaps colonialism has something to do with it?

My first notions of "American expat" came from Hemingway and Fitzgerald who lived abroad, but did so as a way to experience other cultures. Stein ended up permanently settled in France, but the feel at least to me, was that they would return to the States with a wider world-view.

The English expat is a bit different it seems. While people like Joyce and Orwell spent time on the Continent, for a lot of the same reasons as the above mentioned Americans, there was also this huge administrative/economic system of Empire. And I think these people "posted" abroad sort of define the classic English concept of the expat. They set about creating almost a separate culture apart from the locals (and in fact in China they had little official zones carved out in many cities). And then things like Hong Kong. 

They weren't there particularly to immerse themselves in the culture of the country they lived in - and probably would have quickly corrected you if you had mentioned them as immigrants..