why do americans refer to all of the uk as "england"?

Question

i met an american who was enjoying her holiday in "england"when she was in Glasgow,Scotland

Answer 1

lol. when i tell peole i'm going to the uk they have no idea what i mean, i have to say england so they'll understand

Answer 2

Personally, I know the difference between Scotland and England, but I know a lot of people think England encompasses England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Personally, I get confused by the difference between the United Kingdom, Great Britain, and the British Isles, and which ones (if any) actually include Ireland.

Answer 3

Most have not studied the history of England or the United Kingdom and so, yes, most refer to the UK as England... I took more than just a few courses on the history of England and the UK and still call them "England." Old habits die hard. My wife, disagrees. When she refers to England, she refers only to the country of England. She doesn't include, Ireland, Scotland or Wales. But then, we're not exactly "average..."

Answer 4

I think it is uncommon for an American to think that Scotland is a part of England. I do, however, encounter many people (including myself, admittedly) who get confused about what is included in the United Kingdom, Great Britain, etc. I imagine that some Americans refer to everything as England, but I think that they are in the minority.

The manner in which you phrased your question does prove a point though. My guess is that you meant to ask why people from the United States refer to all of the UK as England. While commonly used to refer specifically to the United States, the term "Americans" (especially without such descriptive terms as "south" or north") refers to everyone from Canada, USA, Mexico, and all of South America. It just proves that people from the US aren't the only ones that participate in the use of ambiguous terminology.

Answer 5

Once upon a time U.K did not exist. England, Scotland, and other U.K countries were not together as they are now. People were used to say England instead of U.K and as we know we arrive from Britain, therefore we were first used to say England, and now people are used to say England. England was the one who united U.K therefore, the U.S and many other countries refer to U.K as Engalnd. American are not the only ones who do this, it is just about what they are used to call it. There are some Americans who do not know what U.K is and they are very behind in their geographical knowledge.

I hope this answers your question...

Answer 6

The same reason many people in the world think the Midwest and the South West in the US are all cowboys. Most people focus on things that are most relevant to their everyday life. For many Americans, how you refer to yourselves is not important, so they don't take the time to figure it out. Just like we all have an idea about how our Congress works, but most of us still only understand it superficially. And it is important, whether we think so or not.

Answer 7

We don't. We refer to England as England, and Scotland as Scotland, and Wales as Wales and Ireland as Ireland.

Answer 8

hahahha. well, i've never done this. i call england, england. i call scotland, scotland. but, it's kind of funny. (sorry if i'm being offensive) my husband is always saying they're all the same thing, every country....

Answer 9

Ignorance.

Answer 10

Americans are not too bright when it comes to foreign knowledge. Bush like mentality.