[msflea]

Why oh why, do the Brits constantly call Middle Easteners (Arabs, Muslims, etc)... ASIANS????? Realizing that some of the Pakistani's can be called Asians, but why do it? When one says Asians, one thinks of China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, etc..

[Iscool]

Exactly...They are not Asians...

[SF Republican]

Why oh why, do the Brits constantly call Middle Easteners (Arabs, Muslims, etc)... ASIANS?????
I think they are on the asian continent

[Mrs. Don-o]

It's kinda like using the term "African-Americans" for millions of Americans who have never been to Africa and whose ancestors for 8 or 9 generations didn't live in Africa, either.

And think of the word "Indians" which means people from--- India? Indiana? Indochina? Indonesia? --- New Mexico?

[Publius6961]

You're embarrassing us, flea.
You need to travel a little more.

The brits have been using that terminology for hundreds of years before the US even existed.
I understand the terms perfectly, whenever I read them in the Brit context. That would include former Brit possessions.

Perhaps we Americans should have more carefully adopted the old existing Brit definitions.
Brits get a lot of stuff wrong.
Why would they call a car trunk a "boot"? Cars don't even have feet!

Good luck trying to tell them they got lots of words "wrong".

[Mrs. Don-o]

The western edge of Asia is Turkey (called in ancient times "the province of Asia" or "Asia Minor"), and the countries of the Levant: Israel, Lebanon, Syria. These coutries, everything east of them, comprise the continent of Asia.

[expatpat]

When one says Asians, one thinks of China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, etc.

You do, but in Britain there are a lot of asians, and the vast majority of them are Pakistanis and Indians.

[MrEdd]

Why oh why, do the Brits constantly call Middle Easteners (Arabs, Muslims, etc)... ASIANS?

Umm... because they know geography?

---

Asia Minor

---

Asia

Semper Fidelis

[HIDEK6]

Why oh why, do the Brits constantly call Middle Easteners (Arabs, Muslims, etc)... ASIANS?????

That makes as much sense as calling Colin Powell and African American.

Teresa Heinz is an African American.

[Kozak]

When one says Asians, one thinks of China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, etc..

That IS why. It's misdirection from calling the terrorists what they ARE, M-U-S-L-I-M-S