why are english people so arrogant..and why does no other country like them?

Question

everywhere i travell in the world no one likes the english..either because they are arrogant/hooligans/ignorant/selfish/single minded kinda people!! and no one has a good word to say about them..why is this...and if there are any english people replying..please dont say jeliousy as spanish/brasilian/french/scottish/irish/italian and many more nations would tell you...that maybe the english are jelious of everyone else!

Answer 1

ENGLISH PEOPLE ARE ARROGANT BECAUSE THEY WERE BORN LIKE THAT AND ITS IN THEIR BLOOD, AND IT IS IN THEIR NATURE. NOBODY LIKES THEM BECAUSE THEY ONCE RULED THE MAJORITY OF COUNTRIES IN WORLD AND EXPLOITED THEM TO UNIMAGINABLE EXTENTS .

Answer 2

Firstly you should ask why is it that people believe in stereotypes and then you more easily see how they come to "label" a nation, because after all... you are asking why in "some regions of the world" there are "some" who believe in the stereotypical arrogant Brit, never mind the millions of other stereotypes available, (not all of them negative mind you)

You might find that in specific regions of the world (ones you have visited maybe ?) the political or trade issues have biased a nation, or a small part of the population.
Even sporting rivalry, like that between footballing nations can easily do this, and mistaking these petty grievances as the popular opinion shared by the nation is nothing but shortsightedness.

It could even arise from a cultural misunderstanding, like failing to burp loudly after you eat a satisfying meal and in so doing, complimenting your hosts on the lovely meal. (how rude, those arrogant people don't like our hospitality !!)...

And then you can ask why a specific person has this specific image of a whole nation summed up into one little word, be it negative or positive, (which kind of seems to be one of the most arrogant things to do in itself)

Not that I'm a saint mind you, more like a hypocrite who wants to change.

and for the record I'm not English either..

Answer 3

I'm guessing you're an American, or after the events of Saturday, Portuguese. I would definitely agree with you had you replaced the word 'English' with 'American'.

You are exaggerating patriotism. The English are as patriotic as any other nation, even more so now since our Cricket team won the Ashes, and we have the more famous football players.

Only a minority ruin things for the rest of us by misbehaving. The English, in general, are far from ignorant. Most of us know that there are other countries out there, so unlike your geographically challenged Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. (abt that last bit, I'm assuming you're American).

You slate the English but may I remind you what language you're asking your question in?! We invented the language and no matter how much you guys mangle it, it is still English.

If anything, there is a lot of anti-American feeling around; a lot more than the anti-Anglo sentiments you claim to have observed. For example, a British journalist (Simon Reeve) went to a country (I forget which one... I think it was Abkhazia)... his translator mistakenly told everyone that him and his crew were American and they refused to speak to them. When Reeve clarified that they were British, they loosened up.

Answer 4

Alot of people seem to find English people "cold", but they aren't necessarily, it is just that culturally the English are much more reserved than other societies. It has been said that striking a conversation with someone on a train is tantamount to physical assault in England! This does not mean the English are any ruder, more arrogant, obnoxious etc, but instead don't particularly like talking to strangers. While most cultures, particularly in the Western world are "positively polite" - they emphasise an individual's need for inclusion, British society is "negatively polite" - it emphasises an individual's need to privacy, they are both perfectly valid ways of doing things, but people who are used to "positively polite" societies might think the English don't like them. It's not true.

Secondly, no society is better than any other. To think that a group of people is "arrogant" by nature is untrue, and suggests a narcissistic attitude towards one's own culture. I'm English, and I hope that I'm not arrogant, although like in any society there are arrogant English people, but I'm sure there are some people in your own culture whom you dislike for being arrogant. Just asking, how many English people have you met? There are 45.3 million English people in England (110 - 120 million worldwide). Have you met all of them? Were they all arrogant? Only then can you say "English people are arrogant".

Answer 5

Why do you generalise 'the English' as one group?
Im English but im a West-Midlander. I personally dont rub well with many Londoners but we're both English. I have more in common with many Europeans of similar backrounds then to the Oxford-born.
I dont believe however we're arrogant as a Nation. I think we can very humble about many things. Sure, our older generations dont seem to be ableto stop mentioning the bloody war or the Falklands conflict but my generation are much more accepting of different people, simply because its not an issue to us.
Im English and thats just who i am, dont judge me by the country my parents shagged in

Edit
BTW Mrs D, you say we're a crazy nation, and you grew up in South Africa? Did you miss the *cough* Apartheid era thang? I beg to differ that South Africans can take the moral highground

Answer 6

Wow, who are you mad at? That's not a very nice thing to say. Even in the United States people say that Northerners, or Southerens, or Mid Westerners, etc. are arrogant or rude or whatever. Each area of the world has traits that maybe different than others. Therefore people put titles on those traits. What is rude or arrogant to one may not be to another. It's the difference in cultures, the way we all are brought up.

By the way, I'm American, not English!!!

Answer 7

English as in people from the British Isles or just English speaking people in general? I was recently in England, Scotland, France, and the Netherlands for vacation/ holiday and I did not run into a single rude person until I got back into the states and stood in line for 3 hours at the US customs in Detroit. The customs officials were nasty and quite rude. However, I couldn't really blame them as the higher ups thought it would be satisfactory for three poor souls to process four packed international flights arriving at the same time, brilliant! So, I can say several nice things about the British, the Scots, the French, and the Dutch. Even the so-called riots in Paris and France were completely blown out of proportion. My wife and I had to walk right through one of those "riots" to get to the ballet at the Opera Garnier in Paris. They did not say one rude word. As a matter of fact the only thing they said was, "Excuse us sir"(translated from the French) as they parted to allow us to pass through. They were only college kids protesting just like any college campus in America. So, my advice to you, remove that huge chip from your shoulder and treat people the way you would like to be treated and the results will astound you. Whether they speak American english or Arabic, people are people and deep down we all want the same things. It is only when we start letting what we see and hear from TV and small minded people influence our perceptions rather than our own experiences that we start spouting stereotypes, ethnocentric beliefs, and general rubbish. Think before you speak, please.

Answer 8

you need to travel more my friend-its true that a lot of people do have a problem with the english,but have you heard what they think about the americans lately-im english and ive always found that the vast majority of people wherever you go take you as they find you and as im a pretty nice person ive always found all people of all nationalities to be just the same as us-some good,some bad and and some in between-maybe they hate you because you cant spell jealous,or maybe you are not a very nice person and they treat you accordingly,or maybe you are a lovely person whos just had the misfortune to run into a lot of nasty foreigners-id rather be english than american at this present time anyway,so if we're disliked thats cool because the yanks are reviled by many

Answer 9

Most people in the world don't get to meet regular english people because most regular english people can't afford to travel much. Those that travel on a regular basis are usually ignorant stuck up types who think that the world owes them some sort of favour. Other nations views of the english are made up by their limited experience of this arrogant and ignorant minority.

Answer 10

i ma not English.

really many people don't like English people
(1) because they are dominant - at least economically - and many people don't make the distinction between USA and Britain due to the language. many hate as Saxon origin in itself. also technologically, nearly all terms are named after English word, for many people it is a problem.
(2) once french was wide spoken language and now it is English many french speaking people feel it as a defeat. due to this feeling.
(3) Britain has a close relationship/friendship with USA. many who hate USA fro many reasons hate British people too in relation to USA.
(4) during the colonisation era, British conquered different part of the world. due to this fact, the colonised country and its people in general hate the English.
(5) Argentinians hate British (and also USA) due to the conflict over an island in s. America near Argentina (sorry, i have forgotten the name). and also the British especially football fans, considers the Argentinians as the one who cheat (maradona's goal in 1986)
(6) those who are from latin culture - s. Americans in general - can't or don't know how to appreciate other cultures (once they even told me that the whole world speak Spanish - what a silly)
(7) due to personal and different reasons..

Answer 11

I'm Irish and I certainly don't like arrogant, ignorant hooligans.
I haven't found the English people to provide any more of these than any other nation.

Most English people I have come in contact with have been extraordinarily polite and kind.