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Position:Home>Genealogy> Several ethnicities...so what do I list under "Nationality?"?


Question:I am:
50% caucasian.
25% african-american
25% native-american

so what do i list under nationality on forms when "mixed" and "other" are not an option. ive always listed caucasian in those instances because thats what my majority ethnicity is. i've heard that's what you do. is that true? if not, then what should i list?


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I am:
50% caucasian.
25% african-american
25% native-american

so what do i list under nationality on forms when "mixed" and "other" are not an option. ive always listed caucasian in those instances because thats what my majority ethnicity is. i've heard that's what you do. is that true? if not, then what should i list?
I think that if there is no "other" sellection you are supposed to put the race that you have the most percentage of.
You are technically supposed to put whatever you have the highest percentage of. I am persian, american indian, and caucasion, and sometimes I actually just write in "other" or "bi-racial".
First you're lucky -- any mix like that makes those around you much richer. Fortunately the mainstream is starting to understand the benefits of recognizing multi-culturalism -- but there are still a lot of cases where someone is trying to force you into a box. Personally, it's offensive to: 1) profit from a culture if you've not truly recognized yourself as part of that culture, and to 2) force others to limit how they answer this issue.

Ask yourself (don't let others define you):
To whom do you identify:
To whom do you allow yourself or seek to be identified with:
Who do you consider family -- what is their culture
Are you drawn to align, out of more than simple curiosity to a particular set of beliefs, language, foods, clothing, music, and the other aspects of culture

Hope this helps. Have a good one.
Your nationality would be the country of which you are a citizen. It is not the same thing as your ethnicity.
If it is a pencil and paper form, "Mixed" is always an option; write it in and let the idiots who designed it cope with the problems. Any question about people except "Living or Dead?" should have an option for people who don't fit any of the common answers.

If it is a true Nationality question, and you are a citizen of the USA, choose that. Nationality and Ethnicity are different. The day after a half-Nigerian, half-Norwegian person takes his naturalization oath, he is as American as someone whose family came over on the Mayflower.

If it is a computer form, leave it blank. If you have to fill it in to get the stupid machine to continue, pick Caucasian if you want to make the machine happy, or pick the one you feel like that day.
If they list race under Nationality, they are confused. Nationality is what country you belong to. If you can only pick one race, pick the one you have always identified most as. If people see you as white or largely white, then check white.
Your nationality is what ever country you are a citizen of. Almost any one can become a naturalized American; but they are just that, a "Naturalized American".
As to filling out forms, I would suggest marking whichever one you feel you belong to. No matter which of the three, it is most likely "mixed". Mine is. They consider me to be a "Caucasian", but I have ancestors who are Native American, including Eskimos and Innuit and ancestors from at least 3 African countries, plus Egypt and ancestors from Polynesia and many places around the globe.
My grandfather was a friend of Red Cloud, so I usually consider myself to be "Indian".
As to ethnicity, it all depends upon how you were raised and which group you feel most comfortable with. Of course, you could mark "Caucasian" one time, "African American" the next time and "Native American" the next time.
Me, I think it is absurd, not only in regards to "race" or "ethnicity" to expect people to mark one or another, but also most forms just do not allow people to mark things as they are.
Good luck.
If you've kept affiliation with a native tribe, that would be the major choice. If you haven't, then you can use any of them legally. The Census Bureau has amended their forms to include "multiracial" and the Bureau of Standards has implemented it on all government and government-reported forms. Most employment forms now allow you to check "all that apply".