FM,
I am afraid you are still flattering the average American. I am guessing that Ken Burns has helped, and so did Mel Gibson and Liam Neeson, after a fashion, but in general, I wouldn't count on the average person I meet to know anything at all about American History- and I live in SC where it literally stares you in the face at every turn.
To answer Black Rose's most recent question, I believe thoughtful Americans recognize their different strains of ancestry when they are reminded of them. Most of us have one surname which has persisted- and with it that names' origins. Another folkway of the American South is a tendency to use surnames as middle names, including the practice of naming a second son after the mother's father, with the father's surname tacked onto the end. Little girls are called Mary Heyward or Anne Douglas or Caroline Salley ( A Huguenot surname, originally, not Sally, short for Sarah).
Heritage societies are another reminder. Several of the presidents of my local Saint Andrew's society have Huguenot surnames. I am not a member of the SC Huguenot society, though I know people who are, including some who are also members of the St Andrew's. We are ancestor worshippers here in SC. I have no idea what people do in California or Oregon.
I have a chart that will tell you who my great great grandfathers are ( and their grandfathers). I can recite the names of my great grandfathers and, come to think of it, they were all born here. I believe the person who is looking for a particular ethnic tie will emphasize that one, perhaps ignoring others, or simply not bothering to trace them.
I commend the Wikipedia article on the Scots Irish in America to you. It is fairly detailed and nicely annotated.
Some take the high road and some take the low road. Who's in the gutter? MacLowlife
Originally Posted by MacLowlife
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