Brits take a crack at US geography

[GA Russell]

I think we'll all agree that these folks did pretty well, unless they are in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or something.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/robinedds/its-thanksgiving-so-we-asked-some-brits-to-label-the-us-stat

[Leeway]

Not sure a lot of Americans would do much better (excluding that first map-that was bad!). There ere some interesting consistencies. I think they all got Texas right, California and the West Coast generally too. The Carolinas fared well too. NE and Midwest, not so much.

[Jazzmoose]

Considering the articles I've seen in my life concerning American knowledge of U.S. geography, making fun of these attempts is probably the most moronic thing I've seen today.

[Hardbopjazz]

I agree. I wonder how many Americans would get these right.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I laughed so much my stomach hurts. The American's trying to label European countries is much funnier.

MG

[kinuta]

Good job they didn't ask Japanese high school kids. They would have scored zero.

I asked two to name three countries in Africa, their response was ' Africa is a country, isn't it?

[David Ayers]

Some funny things there I guess but I agree with GAR - most of these are a good shot, all things considered. These are states, not nations, so the need-to-know is a little bit different, from a European perspective. I like 'no one knows' (for Kansas) and 'Big Scotland' (for Canada)...

[A Lark Ascending]

Is there one where Americas do the counties of the United Kingdom?

I suspect you might get a slightly better performance from Brits on the USA if only because the USA features so hugely in the popular culture - films, songs etc.

Have a go with England:

[king ubu]

Why does it have the colour of a pig?

[Big Beat Steve]

Is there one where Americans do the counties of the United Kingdom?

Sounds familiar ...

Just ask Americans who intend to go to Germany or even those who even have been to Germany (!!), including those who've been shipped here by the Army, and you will find that there is an alarmingly high rate who steadfastly insist the Heidelberg Castle is in the heart of Bavaria which of course is straight along the River Rhine! And so on and so on ...

This would be a bit like "Yurpeens" believing each American wears ten-gallon hats while surfing the waves along the coast ... but how many of those who believe THAT could there possible be? Like you said ... presence of the US in popular culture everywhere on the globe does help to "educate" people a bit sometimes ...

[Clunky]

Why does it have the colour of a pig?

something to do with St George.

[BillF]

Postal abbreviations for US states often stop me in my tracks, particularly as so many start with M: MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT

Try your hand at these, Brits.

Edited November 28, 2013 by BillF

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Postal abbreviations for US states often stop me in my tracks, particularly as so many start with M: MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT

Try your hand at these, Brits.

I got 'em, but I can't necessarily spell 'em

Massachusetts - oh the spell checker tells me when I'm wrong.

Maryland

Maine

Michigan

Minnesota

Missouri

Mississippi

Montana

MG

[Edward]

Is there one where Americas do the counties of the United Kingdom?

I suspect you might get a slightly better performance from Brits on the USA if only because the USA features so hugely in the popular culture - films, songs etc.

Have a go with England:

I suspect that most Americans would not be able to name one county in the United Kingdom let alone identify a county on a map by name. My parents were immigrants (Dutch father and English mother), most of my relatives reside in the U.K. (although I no longer write letters to any of them) and my knowledge of European geography is pretty strong as I am also an Anglophile and a World War II history buff, but I doubt that I could correctly name more than a handful of counties in the U.K. At the risk of drawing a good laugh, how about Devonshire, Surrey, Sussex, Ulster, and Yorkshire? I recall writing my English cousin in my youth and being a little dumbfounded by the length of her address. Of course, I have lived in California for practically my entire life and I probably could only correctly identify about one-half of the counties in my state. I am sure that I would do very well identifying European countries save for a few of those that comprised parts of what was formerly Yugoslavia.

I think that the Brits' responses in the linked page above are quite good overall - most reflect a very good sense of humor if nothing else.

I am a little surprised, though, that Hawaii was so often misidentified or not identified at all considering its location smack dab in the middle of the Pacific and its importance during Word War II. Then again, if my AP U.S. history teacher in high school could not be bothered to cover World War II about thirty years ago, then I cannot imagine that instructors (in either the U.S. or the U.K.) are doing any better today.

By the way, Lark Ascending, what castle/ruins do you have pictured in your avatar?

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Is there one where Americas do the counties of the United Kingdom?

I suspect you might get a slightly better performance from Brits on the USA if only because the USA features so hugely in the popular culture - films, songs etc.

Have a go with England:

Those are the old counties, aren't they? There's no East & West Sussex, just Sussex. And do I see Rutland in there? Oh, and an undivided Yorkshire. Think I could do a lot of them, but the Lake District and the Midlands. MIGHT get Notts

Gotta say, England looks funny without Wales next door.

MG

[A Lark Ascending]

...but I doubt that I could correctly name more than a handful of counties in the U.K.

By the way, Lark Ascending, what castle/ruins do you have pictured in your avatar?

Don't worry - I had trouble with quite a few and I live here!

The ruins are two old tin mine engine houses on the coast of Cornwall (the toe at the extreme left!). My spiritual home even though I live (for a couple more years, at least) in the middle of England.

Those are the old counties, aren't they? There's no East & West Sussex, just Sussex. And do I see Rutland in there? Oh, and an undivided Yorkshire. Think I could do a lot of them, but the Lake District and the Midlands. MIGHT get Notts

Gotta say, England looks funny without Wales next door.

MG

You might be right - I struggled with some, especially up on the border with Scotland.

No Wales? Didn't seem to bother the EC a few years back.

If you think doing England by county is bewildering try doing it by postcode. Most of Notts starts with NG. I'm in Notts but close to Sheffield in South Yorkshire so mine is S (it was part of the experimental area for postcodes).

Edited November 28, 2013 by A Lark Ascending

[Shawn]

I doubt most Americans could even FIND the UK on a map let alone name the counties.

If someone showed me a map of Europe and asked me to name countries I'd probably score pretty poorly myself.

[Big Beat Steve]

Gotta say, England looks funny without Wales next door.

MG

Those are the old counties, aren't they? There's no East & West Sussex, just Sussex. And do I see Rutland in there? Oh, and an undivided Yorkshire. Think I could do a lot of them, but the Lake District and the Midlands. MIGHT get Notts

Rutland IS there alright, MG.

Just check the map here and compare with Bev's pink map:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rutland_UK_locator_map_2010.svg

[BillF]

I doubt most Americans could even FIND the UK on a map let alone name the counties.

If someone showed me a map of Europe and asked me to name countries I'd probably score pretty poorly myself.

So would the great majority of people in this country. As for knowledge of Engish geography, a fellow northerner who went to London University told me that his fellow (southern) students hadn't the faintest idea as to the relative position on the map of northern cities like Liverpool, Manchester, Bradford and Leeds.

[Hardbopjazz]

I quizzed myself. I knew just a few counties in Great Britain. Did I get the ones I marked off correct?

[A Lark Ascending]

It's actually very complicated - various reforms over the years have redrawn boundaries. The map I put up seems to be out of date.

This map is how I visualise it:

Though they have not labelled Berkshire (where Reading is) and Buckinghamshire (under the last letters of Oxford). Or Rutland (next to Leicestershire). Or Nottinghamshire!!!!

How many have you lived in?

Think I get 9 (8 between 1955-1977; 1 from 1978).

This one is better:

Edited November 30, 2013 by A Lark Ascending

[erwbol]

We have only twelve provinces.

[A Lark Ascending]

I used to be able to do the 7 when I taught 17thC European history. Would struggle beyond Holland, Zeeland, Gelderland now.

Wiki tells me:

1. The Duchy of Guelders (Gelre in Dutch)
2. The County of Holland
3. The County of Zeeland
4. The former Bishopric of Utrecht
5. The Lordship of Overijssel
6. The Lordship of Frisia
7. The Lordship of Groningen and Ommelanden.

Edited November 30, 2013 by A Lark Ascending

[erwbol]

Holland is divided into North (provincial capital Haarlem, national capital Amsterdam) and South (provincial capital & seat of national government The Hague, Rotterdam). The least obvious should be the one in the middle. That piece of land called Flevoland was claimed from the sea last century after the Afsluitdijk between North Holland and Frisia (Friesland) was constructed.

Edited November 30, 2013 by erwbol

[A Lark Ascending]

You probably know this but Dutch engineers did a lot of work draining our Fenlands in Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire.

Where I live in Nottinghamshire there were some huge estates (the area is called 'The Dukeries'), some of which were given by William of Orange to his Dutch followers after the 1688-9 Revolution. One was William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland. The names Bentinck and Portland are all over the place round here in street names, pubs etc. Even the coal mine (now long gone) closest to where I work was Bentinck pit.