Being an American in South America seems to be a bit of a hassle. Whenever I mention the nation of my childhood, education, accent, and family pets, I invariably hear the G word, within about three seconds. Gringo. The first time was cute and marginally unexpected. After the thirtieth time, you stop bringing the USA up.
Anyway, sooner or later - often just after holding me responsible for the Hiroshima bombing or Salvador Allende´s death - they tell me just why I´m called gringo. There are two variations, both stemming from the Mexican-American War, fought in the 19th century. The first says that American and Irish soldiers sang a song called Green Grow the Lilacs, and that the first two words got smooshed together by the eavesdropping Mexicans. The second says that the invading soldiers wore green uniforms and some Mexicans, unhappy being invaded, yelled at the Americans : Green, go (away)!...
The only problem with these folk etymologies is that the word existed nearly a century prior to the Mexican-American War, and it existed in Spain. The most likely, but unprovable, origin for the word is griego, the Spanish word for Greek. Similarly, in English we say that something "sounds Greek" when it sounds foreign or complicated. Another possible root is peregrino, meaning traveler, pilgrim, foreigner.
So in South America, I travel around as a Swede, carrying around my blond hair, blue eyes, and most importantly, Swedish passport. The Swedes never get blamed for their international legacies : dynamite, safety matches, TetraPak, and IKEA. So you can see why I go by El Sueco down here.
Anyway, sooner or later - often just after holding me responsible for the Hiroshima bombing or Salvador Allende´s death - they tell me just why I´m called gringo. There are two variations, both stemming from the Mexican-American War, fought in the 19th century. The first says that American and Irish soldiers sang a song called Green Grow the Lilacs, and that the first two words got smooshed together by the eavesdropping Mexicans. The second says that the invading soldiers wore green uniforms and some Mexicans, unhappy being invaded, yelled at the Americans : Green, go (away)!...
The only problem with these folk etymologies is that the word existed nearly a century prior to the Mexican-American War, and it existed in Spain. The most likely, but unprovable, origin for the word is griego, the Spanish word for Greek. Similarly, in English we say that something "sounds Greek" when it sounds foreign or complicated. Another possible root is peregrino, meaning traveler, pilgrim, foreigner.
So in South America, I travel around as a Swede, carrying around my blond hair, blue eyes, and most importantly, Swedish passport. The Swedes never get blamed for their international legacies : dynamite, safety matches, TetraPak, and IKEA. So you can see why I go by El Sueco down here.
I've thought about getting my Mexican passport. I think that might be a great thing the next time I head south.
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