Americans referring to cities like LONDON, ENGLAND and not just London.?

Question

Why do all Americans refer to cities with their countries as well? Like "Paris France" or "Tokyo Japan". Why not just say "Paris" or "Tokyo"
The same for american cities like "Miami Florida" or "Dallas Texas".
Its weird cos everywhere else people just say the city because they know where it is, for example they know Moscow is in Russia , so just say Moscow. Full stop.
Just a bit odd!

Answer 1

Not all Americans do that. Just the annoying ones do.

Answer 2

We pretty much qualify the "real City" as opposed to a town or city or village here in America with the same name. As a for instance at this moment I am 10 miles from Paris, Tx and going to a destination about 20 miles from Paris, MO and Lived for many years in Pittsburg TX as opposed to Pittsburgh, PA. If we think there is any chance the person we are talking to will be unclear about which, Paris , or which, London, or which Pittsburg we clarify with the extra details.
ALSO if we are going to or have been too Paris, France or London, England, we are probably bragging :)

Answer 3

First, not "all" Americans (or any other nations' peoples for that matter!) do it.

Second, it depends on the context.

If you're talking about cities in general, then it's wise to add the country to the city name, as there may be more than one (e.g., there are numerous towns in the world named London, Paris, Baghdad, Moscow, etc; in the US, Kentucky has all of them, though it may not be alone in that distinction). Granted, relatively few people are even aware of this fact, so it would seem to be superfluous to add the country.

If the conversation is specifically about the UK or Europe, I doubt that anybody would not understand that "London", alone, referred to Great Britain. However, if that same conversation included a Kentuckian, then it would be understandable that he/she would append the State or nation name, if only to avoid confusion about one's home.

Third, I'd only be concerned about this if the individual couldn't find a given famous city or nation on a map or globe!

Fourth, what's "odd" to you, is perfectly normal to others. You need to be more tolerant: To each his own; live and let live; a rose by any other name; etc, etc, etc!

Regardless, "issues" like this are W-A-Y down my list of things to be concerned about! There are plenty of other alleged "faux pas" to go around, such as your use of the pseudo-word "cos" instead of "because", which puzzles me, "cos" you spelled out other, longer words, that could have been easily, and even correctly, abbreviated! Using text messaging or other non-standard shorthand styles or abbreviations makes your text difficult to read, and, quite frankly, makes it appear as if it were written by a child. So, though it may pain you to type out a few extra letters, you'll look far more intelligent and mature for having done so! "Cos", that's why! ;)

Answer 4

I don't do that and I'm American, but you would be surprised how many cities out there are named the same thing. There is not just 1 Paris you know. Sure most people would assume you are talking about the most famous Paris, but who really cares anyways how people say it. Not every city has a unique name, many are duplicated.

Answer 5

Depends on the person. There is a Paris, Texas and a Dallas, Ga, so in some circles it could cause confusion.

I guess some people just like the sound of their own voice so much they have to add the state or country.

Answer 6

There is London, England and London, Ontario. There is Paris, France, and Paris, Texas, and Paris, Kentucky. Sometimes one needs to specify WHICH Paris, or Madrid, or Portland, etc. Why do you spell "because" as "cos?"
And there is also a Brooklyn in Ohio.

Answer 7

They do this because there very many non-famous small towns here in the US that are named after larger European Cities, or even American Cities located in other states.
(Paris, Kentucky vs Paris, France - for example.)

Answer 8

Don't you mean Scotlandshire London England? By the way,do you know a John Smith of Wimledon? I met him three years ago in the States. HA!

Answer 9

Some people are limted by their imagination and also by their own travel savvy. There is an Athens, Georgia as well as Greece, but depends if you are talking about grits or the greek ruins. I guess it all goes back to the attention you paid in Geography class. It may even stem back when Americans were proud to members of the State in which they lived, such as the 13 colonies to become States to denote some auspicious title so the Earl of Devonshire, could meet his American cousin counterpart, Joe Blow of New Haven, CT.

Answer 10

I'm not american but they probably do it because there are also many cities in the US named after other cities in the world like Paris, Illinois; London, Ohio etc.

Answer 11

Ever hear of these cities?

London, Ohio USA
Athens, Georgia USA
Paris, Texas USA
Naples, Florida USA
Birmingham, Alaska USA

Need I say more?