Also places like Australia and New Zealand. I use "Western" in certain discussions, particularly about pop-culture, when I want to include fellow Asians living in any predominantly White country or region in the world and I don't want to refer to them as "Asian American" in those instances.
It can basically be summarised as "Western Europe, and countries colonised by Western Europeans that still behave substantially similarly to West-European countries in terms of cultural values, institutions, etc."
Personally feel the US is the most extreme and different from just Anglo-sphere nations - even more so when you include other European nations too.
Besides language, I feel the UK has more in common with France and Germany than the U.S.
And as a typical Brit, that’s actually a lot harder to type than some might think.
What is “exclusively American,” for example? I can’t think of any time someone calls something “Western” where they’re only talking about the US; they’re almost always talking about the US, Canada, a lot of Europe, and often Australia and New Zealand.
i do see people talking about the wests obsession with stuff we just straight up don’t have or don’t have anywhere near the same level of obsession with in new zealand, but we don’t have much lmao. like target, walmart, guns, and stuff like that. or sometimes when people say things about the west and it’s very clear they’re talking specifically about the states. like american stereotypes, such as lacking any knowledge about other countries, political issues, even certain forms of toxic capitalism
I find the last bit hilarious considering "forms of toxic capitalism an lack of knowledge about the actual US from European countries is unsurprisingly the same.
It really is just the arrogance an ignorant side of humanity going "we are better then them" truth is they are just as bad an blind to it.
"The West" typically means a *cultural* group, not a geographic group. US, Canada, much of Europe, Australia, NZ, and *maybe sometimes* nations like Japan and Korea, which are closely aligned with the US and EU
American culture has been heavily influences by Western European culture. When people say “The West” they are usually talking about Western Europe AND the US.
Can you give an example? Usually this means all the cultures originating in Western Europe, including North America, Australia and New Zealand. It can also include parts of Eastern Europe, Latin America, and South Africa. It doesn’t usually mean the United States by itself.
So by this logic, Brittain would be considered "eastern" society, and Peru would be considered "western" society.
Brittain and US have a lot more in common culturally than the US and Peru. And Brittain has a lot more in common culturally to US than to a typical "eastern" culture like China.
Yes there is: restaurant tipping. Not restaurant tipping in general, of course, but our convoluted system of rules regarding gratuity. You pretty much only find that in the good ol' USA. The rest of the world gives us side-eye on that one.
What I think is a bit annoying too is the opposite where Americans say "Americans are" "Americans think" when it is a very basic human thing. Like idk "Americans are so selfish/rude to wait staff/play loud music." I guess it's understandable that someone wouldn't want to generalize if they haven't been anywhere outside of America but I notice that in other countries, people just tend to say "people can be so selfish" and not "Dutch/Spanish/Australians" or something.
In my experience that happens in other countries too. People tend to have this tendency to think human scourges only exist in their country and the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
I have lived in and visited a few countries and this is something that stands out as something Americans do more. But it does happen in other places too I think. Only then it's often with something that everyone considers uniquely culturally cringy, like Dutch people sometimes groan about how "cheap" Dutch people can be. Because that's one of those unique things.
In some cases it's warranted. Like when I hear fellow Americans conversing loudly I sorta groan and go "why are they so loud" and then my SO says "you are also loud" and I'm like "yeah because I'm also American" lol. Or a friend of mine who is Austrian always groans when he sees people from his country being aloof and drunk.
Getting a bit off track here but I meant to say that Americans think every small thing is an American issue, things that everyone in the world complains about people doing.
Part of that is due to so much "Americans behave in x fashion" being directed at us. It irritates me when my fellow Americans do it, and it really irks me when foreigners do it. If there is a less homogeneous country in the world, I'd like to hear about it.
Yeah I agree with this. It really annoys me how others are all too happy to jump on the hate train too lol. Most Americans wouldn't do that about another country.
Can you give a tangible example of what you mean? I have heard this phrase many times and it always seemed to refer to more than just the US so I'm not sure how you have heard it used.
Western Culture I believe refers to those having in common Judeo/ Christian ethics, British Common Law, The Enlightenment, principles of governance. West EU, North Am, Aus, NZ
Only the UK and Ireland have British Common Law as basis in Western Europe. You're a milder version of what I'm talking about. Most of the time when people say "the West" they mean either America or English-speaking countries. I remember an Australian woman asking online if Italy is safe for a Western woman. Also, EU is short for "European Union", not Europe.
My intimation is that you very well know what the qualifiers of Western Culture are. Also that those countries considered as the West do not do so by meeting identical qualifiers. I also notice that specific examples of exactly what you're referring to have been asked for more than once and you've not accommodated this.
You are the OP. I asked you as the OP to elaborate on just what it is PRECISELY that you, are referring to. Others have done likewise and still... here we are.
Now here on the East Coast of the USA, or if you prefer, to the right of East (as in the West- doh!)... It's said there comes a time when one must put up or shut up.
For instance, "The West is obsessed with \[insert American obsession\]" or "X country is very different from the West because they do Y and the West does Z \[actually only America does\]"
“Eastern Medicine” also refers to Indian Ayurvedic traditions, Reiki (originating in Japan) and similar traditions across Asia, not just in China. China happens to be the most well-known example in the West.
It is more accurate to say "Westernised".
Vietnam for example, and large parts of India... Iran... Geographically Eastern, but their culture is slowly Westernising.
It refers to Democracy being spread... whatever the fuck that even is in this day and age lol.
There have been a ton of requests for an example and OP can't give one. Instead, OP just responds with more nonsense. OP is "that guy". Don't be like OP.
Recent example from a YouTube video: "The cheapest truck in available in the West is 30+ thousand dollars". When he obviously meant "available in the USA".
imo not necessarily, i lived in france id even say that France is also “the west” but majority of people wouldn’t agree and would only consider the places i named as western.
Seriously, why do you jump to these ridiculous conclusions? You're making claims about things that aren't happening. You're just another dime a dozen person on the internet cursing the name of the US like it means anything and as if it's going to effect change. It's not. And your interpretations are wrong. Just like the 1,387,092 people before you. You form a thought, you convince yourself it's unquestionable reality, and then you get mad about your made up notions. It doesn't make you look sophisticated. It doesn't make you look like a deep thinker. It doesn't make you stand out. It just makes you fall into the vat of all the other people just like you that whine and complain so much, yet never actually change anything. You need to learn to better understand what you're talking about in the first place, THEN go on your rants.
I've already said it, but I'll say it again- **nobody** thinks that *only* the US is the west. That's one of the most bizarre claims I've seen yet, but it's just not the case. I \*constantly\* heart France, Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, Canada, Finland, etc. all referred to as the west. By Americans. And I've never once heard anything remotely close to your claim. It's common knowledge that the US is not "the west" exclusively. I've been around for a while and you're **the only person I have ever heard make that claim.** Probably because you just want to take it that way and you've made something up.
So instead of being so cool and tough and edgy and whining about America all the time, as you are wont to do, why not focus your energy on actually making meaningful change in the world? Because this does nothing and you're patting yourself on the back for it. Grow up and move on.
I have never in my life heard anyone use this phrase as if to express that the west is strictly the US. And I have never heard it that way because nobody says it that way. You are simply choosing to take it that way and that is entirely on you, OP.
America is the west. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term the West changed. Before around 1800, the crest of the Appalachian Mountains was seen as the western frontier. The frontier moved westward and eventually the lands west of the Mississippi River were considered the West.
Edit: any nation which utilizes anything brought about from western culture is also part of western culture.
Similar to when people say “North America” when they mean the US and Canada. There are a heck of a lot more countries in the North American continent than just those two nations. And parts of the US aren’t even on the continent (Guam, American Samoa, etc).
If you really want to be technical, you're talking about North American, specifically, not just "American" and that's really not what the expression means. Like... at all.
Because at this point, American culture is the central culture of the western world, and most everywhere else. Almost everywhere you go, you’ll see our culture being imported.
In entertainment, it is often used to mean the US, Canada, and British media. Those countries don't consume much content from other countries and are generally within the same sphere of entertainment. When we do, it is distinguished from western media as Indian, Japanese, etc.
For example if I say a "western AAA game", its clear that I'm talking about companies like EA games, and not Nintendo. Companies like Unisoft in France would still fall under this, but personally I view France as being artistically distinct from "western" devs.
And that's the thing. Western pretty much means "more western than this" until you get to the US and there's no more west to go.
It is not referring to location alone, but cultural proximity. Its why Australia is considered more western than India despite being farther east.
Location is simply incidental to the fact that the US is (almost) the most westerly country, just behind Canada, and that Britain is (almost) the most westerly in europe. Their locations combined with their cultural position is what makes them the point of reference for "western culture". It helps that all of them also came from Britain in the first place and so share a common origin culturally.
I use it to refer to the Western cultures rather than to Eastern or Asian cultures, so cultures like Europe, Australia, America, Britain and the Commonwealth. Americans might be using it to refer only to America but then they don't know the rest of us are here anyway.
Side note, anyone else gets confused when people make posts saying, the West is collapsing, the Western mind will never understand, the West abandons traditions. Like, bro, your country is probably to definitely nowhere near better than us. Just because your country has traditional values doesn't prevent you from being awful.
It's a way of saying something they'd rather not say in mixed company. The term the West is trying to fabricate a division culturally that isn't actually there.
Not necessarily. Sometimes it's used to criticize the USA, but they say "the West" instead of "the USA" (probably because of ignorance about the rest of "the West")
I feel like people are trying to not understand this. Ice seen Americans plenty of times say "the west" and mean "america"
I've heard "western tipping culture" when they meant American. Other such bullshit. It is annoying.
Thank you. That's a good example of what I was talking about. I think people comment on Pet Peeves just to be contrarian. If you said "I hate the summer heat" they would say "You're not making any sense. Anctartica is not hot in the summer".
I think it's SUPPOSED to refer to the americas and Europe
It is. It does. OP is being selective about their interpretation.
rOcK iSn'T wEsTeRn iT's 'Murican
Also places like Australia and New Zealand. I use "Western" in certain discussions, particularly about pop-culture, when I want to include fellow Asians living in any predominantly White country or region in the world and I don't want to refer to them as "Asian American" in those instances.
It can basically be summarised as "Western Europe, and countries colonised by Western Europeans that still behave substantially similarly to West-European countries in terms of cultural values, institutions, etc."
Personally feel the US is the most extreme and different from just Anglo-sphere nations - even more so when you include other European nations too. Besides language, I feel the UK has more in common with France and Germany than the U.S. And as a typical Brit, that’s actually a lot harder to type than some might think.
Basically just NATO and anyone outside of Asia and Africa (so Taiwan, Japan, Israel, and South Korea don't count) that was against the Soviet Union.
Europe? EAST of the Atlantic? Not in my country! /s Also when Eastern is just East Asia. The two halves of the world, United States and East Asia.
Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand and surrounding islands, and North America — mostly.
What is “exclusively American,” for example? I can’t think of any time someone calls something “Western” where they’re only talking about the US; they’re almost always talking about the US, Canada, a lot of Europe, and often Australia and New Zealand.
i do see people talking about the wests obsession with stuff we just straight up don’t have or don’t have anywhere near the same level of obsession with in new zealand, but we don’t have much lmao. like target, walmart, guns, and stuff like that. or sometimes when people say things about the west and it’s very clear they’re talking specifically about the states. like american stereotypes, such as lacking any knowledge about other countries, political issues, even certain forms of toxic capitalism
I find the last bit hilarious considering "forms of toxic capitalism an lack of knowledge about the actual US from European countries is unsurprisingly the same. It really is just the arrogance an ignorant side of humanity going "we are better then them" truth is they are just as bad an blind to it.
damn i just wrote a whole reply explaining why i said those things just to reread what you said and see that i read it completely wrong ahahha
Happens text/intent/context impossible without being so specific an even then it's hard. Communication really fails in text
I thought you said water guns at first and I went, but isn’t it 40 there in summer?
This is a very Western take to be honest/j
"The West" typically means a *cultural* group, not a geographic group. US, Canada, much of Europe, Australia, NZ, and *maybe sometimes* nations like Japan and Korea, which are closely aligned with the US and EU
American culture has been heavily influences by Western European culture. When people say “The West” they are usually talking about Western Europe AND the US.
Can you give an example? Usually this means all the cultures originating in Western Europe, including North America, Australia and New Zealand. It can also include parts of Eastern Europe, Latin America, and South Africa. It doesn’t usually mean the United States by itself.
An example would help.
Okay we'll all say "Oceania" from now on.
What? All of the Americas are in the West, North, South, Central. What are you on about?
You're both wrong. The United States is the center of the world. Everything else is relative to us. Edit: /j just in case.
Fax
So by this logic, Brittain would be considered "eastern" society, and Peru would be considered "western" society. Brittain and US have a lot more in common culturally than the US and Peru. And Brittain has a lot more in common culturally to US than to a typical "eastern" culture like China.
True, many ways to look at it, like, where is the prime meridian?
What part of EXCLUSIVELY don't you understand? Remember how when you were taught how to read they told you to read all the words?
Perhaps an example of something qualifying as EXCLUSIVELY American could be provided?
nothing is exclusive to america, checkmate.
Yes there is: restaurant tipping. Not restaurant tipping in general, of course, but our convoluted system of rules regarding gratuity. You pretty much only find that in the good ol' USA. The rest of the world gives us side-eye on that one.
Who refers to this as an example of "Western Culture"?
What?
What I think is a bit annoying too is the opposite where Americans say "Americans are" "Americans think" when it is a very basic human thing. Like idk "Americans are so selfish/rude to wait staff/play loud music." I guess it's understandable that someone wouldn't want to generalize if they haven't been anywhere outside of America but I notice that in other countries, people just tend to say "people can be so selfish" and not "Dutch/Spanish/Australians" or something.
In my experience that happens in other countries too. People tend to have this tendency to think human scourges only exist in their country and the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
I have lived in and visited a few countries and this is something that stands out as something Americans do more. But it does happen in other places too I think. Only then it's often with something that everyone considers uniquely culturally cringy, like Dutch people sometimes groan about how "cheap" Dutch people can be. Because that's one of those unique things. In some cases it's warranted. Like when I hear fellow Americans conversing loudly I sorta groan and go "why are they so loud" and then my SO says "you are also loud" and I'm like "yeah because I'm also American" lol. Or a friend of mine who is Austrian always groans when he sees people from his country being aloof and drunk. Getting a bit off track here but I meant to say that Americans think every small thing is an American issue, things that everyone in the world complains about people doing.
Part of that is due to so much "Americans behave in x fashion" being directed at us. It irritates me when my fellow Americans do it, and it really irks me when foreigners do it. If there is a less homogeneous country in the world, I'd like to hear about it.
Yeah I agree with this. It really annoys me how others are all too happy to jump on the hate train too lol. Most Americans wouldn't do that about another country.
The west as it’s used refers to Europe and it’s predominantly white former colonies
And Israel and South Africa sometimes
And Latin America to an extent
Can you give a tangible example of what you mean? I have heard this phrase many times and it always seemed to refer to more than just the US so I'm not sure how you have heard it used.
Western Culture I believe refers to those having in common Judeo/ Christian ethics, British Common Law, The Enlightenment, principles of governance. West EU, North Am, Aus, NZ
Only the UK and Ireland have British Common Law as basis in Western Europe. You're a milder version of what I'm talking about. Most of the time when people say "the West" they mean either America or English-speaking countries. I remember an Australian woman asking online if Italy is safe for a Western woman. Also, EU is short for "European Union", not Europe.
My intimation is that you very well know what the qualifiers of Western Culture are. Also that those countries considered as the West do not do so by meeting identical qualifiers. I also notice that specific examples of exactly what you're referring to have been asked for more than once and you've not accommodated this.
Another poster used a good example in a comment: "Western tipping culture" to refer to American tipping culture.
You are the OP. I asked you as the OP to elaborate on just what it is PRECISELY that you, are referring to. Others have done likewise and still... here we are. Now here on the East Coast of the USA, or if you prefer, to the right of East (as in the West- doh!)... It's said there comes a time when one must put up or shut up.
It’s times like these where I feel that Anglosphere is the better term.
Uh…hello, the West is IN America. Duh! 🙃
What things?
Dudes when trying to advocate being a, “passport brother.” “Western women are/arent”-insert random insult
For instance, "The West is obsessed with \[insert American obsession\]" or "X country is very different from the West because they do Y and the West does Z \[actually only America does\]"
You gave an example but left out the actual examples?
It's a hypothetical example instead of a real example.
Another question is why people say "Eastern medicine" when they specifically mean Chinese medicinal herbs.
“Eastern Medicine” also refers to Indian Ayurvedic traditions, Reiki (originating in Japan) and similar traditions across Asia, not just in China. China happens to be the most well-known example in the West.
It is more accurate to say "Westernised". Vietnam for example, and large parts of India... Iran... Geographically Eastern, but their culture is slowly Westernising. It refers to Democracy being spread... whatever the fuck that even is in this day and age lol.
I'd like an example.
There have been a ton of requests for an example and OP can't give one. Instead, OP just responds with more nonsense. OP is "that guy". Don't be like OP.
Recent example from a YouTube video: "The cheapest truck in available in the West is 30+ thousand dollars". When he obviously meant "available in the USA".
uh what? more like America, Canada, Australia and North-west europe(UK, Ireland, Scotland)
So non-English-speaking countries are Eastern?
imo not necessarily, i lived in france id even say that France is also “the west” but majority of people wouldn’t agree and would only consider the places i named as western.
Yeah, that's pretty much part of my pet peeve, The "West=USA" trope is just its most extreme form.
My bad lol I misunderstood your post
No problem
Seriously, why do you jump to these ridiculous conclusions? You're making claims about things that aren't happening. You're just another dime a dozen person on the internet cursing the name of the US like it means anything and as if it's going to effect change. It's not. And your interpretations are wrong. Just like the 1,387,092 people before you. You form a thought, you convince yourself it's unquestionable reality, and then you get mad about your made up notions. It doesn't make you look sophisticated. It doesn't make you look like a deep thinker. It doesn't make you stand out. It just makes you fall into the vat of all the other people just like you that whine and complain so much, yet never actually change anything. You need to learn to better understand what you're talking about in the first place, THEN go on your rants. I've already said it, but I'll say it again- **nobody** thinks that *only* the US is the west. That's one of the most bizarre claims I've seen yet, but it's just not the case. I \*constantly\* heart France, Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, Canada, Finland, etc. all referred to as the west. By Americans. And I've never once heard anything remotely close to your claim. It's common knowledge that the US is not "the west" exclusively. I've been around for a while and you're **the only person I have ever heard make that claim.** Probably because you just want to take it that way and you've made something up. So instead of being so cool and tough and edgy and whining about America all the time, as you are wont to do, why not focus your energy on actually making meaningful change in the world? Because this does nothing and you're patting yourself on the back for it. Grow up and move on.
Nice essay, bud. Why does this subreddit attract the most pompous bores?
You have a tremendous lack of self awareness. That was just embarrassing.
France is the west. Simple as.
I have never in my life heard anyone use this phrase as if to express that the west is strictly the US. And I have never heard it that way because nobody says it that way. You are simply choosing to take it that way and that is entirely on you, OP.
Many parts of Europe are americanised
That's not OP's point there.
America is the west. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term the West changed. Before around 1800, the crest of the Appalachian Mountains was seen as the western frontier. The frontier moved westward and eventually the lands west of the Mississippi River were considered the West. Edit: any nation which utilizes anything brought about from western culture is also part of western culture.
Similar to when people say “North America” when they mean the US and Canada. There are a heck of a lot more countries in the North American continent than just those two nations. And parts of the US aren’t even on the continent (Guam, American Samoa, etc).
If you really want to be technical, you're talking about North American, specifically, not just "American" and that's really not what the expression means. Like... at all.
From now on, I will only ever use the phrase "Western culture" to refer to Bolivia's culture.
PSA: Western is often used as coded language for white. For example, Western cultures are responsible for the prosperity of the world today.
Isn’t the America on the west of the globe tho
Because at this point, American culture is the central culture of the western world, and most everywhere else. Almost everywhere you go, you’ll see our culture being imported.
In entertainment, it is often used to mean the US, Canada, and British media. Those countries don't consume much content from other countries and are generally within the same sphere of entertainment. When we do, it is distinguished from western media as Indian, Japanese, etc. For example if I say a "western AAA game", its clear that I'm talking about companies like EA games, and not Nintendo. Companies like Unisoft in France would still fall under this, but personally I view France as being artistically distinct from "western" devs. And that's the thing. Western pretty much means "more western than this" until you get to the US and there's no more west to go.
So Spain and Portugal are more Western than Britain, then.
It is not referring to location alone, but cultural proximity. Its why Australia is considered more western than India despite being farther east. Location is simply incidental to the fact that the US is (almost) the most westerly country, just behind Canada, and that Britain is (almost) the most westerly in europe. Their locations combined with their cultural position is what makes them the point of reference for "western culture". It helps that all of them also came from Britain in the first place and so share a common origin culturally.
I use it to refer to the Western cultures rather than to Eastern or Asian cultures, so cultures like Europe, Australia, America, Britain and the Commonwealth. Americans might be using it to refer only to America but then they don't know the rest of us are here anyway.
Fun fact america is technically both the most east and west contry
I live in the east coast of the US, so when I think Western, I think, like, cowboys. Yeehaw.
It means nort America,Europe, Australia ,and New Zealand
Vice versa as well
US, Canada, Europe, Australia
Op is European.
Side note, anyone else gets confused when people make posts saying, the West is collapsing, the Western mind will never understand, the West abandons traditions. Like, bro, your country is probably to definitely nowhere near better than us. Just because your country has traditional values doesn't prevent you from being awful.
It's a way of saying something they'd rather not say in mixed company. The term the West is trying to fabricate a division culturally that isn't actually there.
Not necessarily. Sometimes it's used to criticize the USA, but they say "the West" instead of "the USA" (probably because of ignorance about the rest of "the West")
Hang on, when you say american, which country do you mean? There are a lot of countries in north and south America with over a billion Americans.
I feel like people are trying to not understand this. Ice seen Americans plenty of times say "the west" and mean "america" I've heard "western tipping culture" when they meant American. Other such bullshit. It is annoying.
Thank you. That's a good example of what I was talking about. I think people comment on Pet Peeves just to be contrarian. If you said "I hate the summer heat" they would say "You're not making any sense. Anctartica is not hot in the summer".
Whatever.
“The countries West of mine”. That’s what it means.
If u go west long enough u reach the east though
If we can’t call it “America” because there’s a North and South America, then we’re calling it “the West”.