Britons

[Borys Bodnaruk]

Just a reminder, too, that “British” also refers to a larger aggregate of parts (English, Scottish, Welsh, etc) and English being the largest, dominant part. It isn’t always appropriate to refer to something as simply English. 
   
  Likewise, from the recent past, Soviet referred to the aggregate of Russian, Armenian, Kazakh, Ukrainian, etc, of which Russian was the largest, dominant part. It wasn’t always appropriate to refer to something as Russian, when it should have been stated as Soviet. 
   
  Yes, media is probably the most frequent purveyor of the terms; it’s not so much a matter of brevity, as it is laziness, and therefore insensitivity to the individual parts.
   
  Another facet - A few of my friends, who are Irish, resent being labeled as British, because it implies they’ve gone to the other side and lost their own distinct identity in the process. Recently, this “resentment” has subsided, mostly to the improved relations between the various "sides". As previously mentioned those of the older generations (40-50+) still are wary of the term.


Don Livingston <temp0001 at SHININGHAPPYPEOPLE.NET> wrote:  > We are British, not Britons. 

I believe American media language is undergoing a shift in regard to this word. Several years ago I was surprised to hear hear British citizens referred to as "Britons" on National Public Radio. It struck me as a poor choice because it could be easily confused with "Bretons," but nowadays I notice it more and more often. It's much briefer to write "three Britons" than "three British citizens." The media's need for brevity will doubtless more and more favor the former over the latter.
       
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