Meghan and Harry Expecting A Baby

[StarSong]

My grandparents / great grandparents came from Norway, Sweden and Italy. They and their children shed the "old country" language and customs as quickly as possible. Those generations were deeply committed to assimilating. For their 50th anniversary (around 1966) my father and his siblings wanted to celebrate by gifting their their parents on a trip to Italy - the country my grandfather left at age 13. He was quite insulted, saying, "I'm not Italian anymore, I am an American citizen. My children are American, my grandchildren are American, and my great-grandchildren are American. Why would I want to go back to Italy?"

I do regret that they didn't teach us Italian, Swedish or Norwegian, but that was not the way of emigres to the US, particularly from the 1940's on back.

My Italian grandmother LOVED Tang - that dreadful powdered fake orange juice - I think because the American astronauts drank it. LOL

 

[Elsie]

Mother knew few German words. She spoke American English. Swede biological father? I have no idea if he knew the Swedish language. Grandmother of course could speak German well, but spoke only English in America, as far as I know. I think she left an aristocratic family to live in America. Why, I don't know but I'm sure glad she did. Also that she met and married a (14 years older than her) German hard working but not so nice pain at times husband-to-be. I guess grandmother's life, the lives of some of her relatives in Germany anyway were quite interesting. (Gypsy Prince. un oh!)

 

[applecruncher]

So the topic has changed from Prince Harry & Meghan expecting a baby to various SF member's personal ancestry?

Start another thread.

 

[Elsie]

You first, applecruncher. :love_heart:

 

[applecruncher]

You first, applecruncher. :love_heart:

If you look you'll see I've already commented on the topic.
Post #3 sums it up for me.

 

[Laurie]

...but their names Are Windsor, they were born Windsor's, , never have been Battenburg , nor will they, ..... whereas..Charles, Anne, Edward and Andrew are all Mountbatten -Windsor and only after a relatively recent battle by prince Philip who once stated he was the only man in Britain who wasn't permitted to give his name to his own children... it first appeared as Mountbatten Windsor when princess Anne signed her wedding certificate in the 70's

Their great grandfather was born Philip Battendurg, so his progeny bear the same name.

The Queen is of a generation where wives, rightly or wrongly, took the husband's name, so she became a Battenberg too, as are all issue.

No amount of politically correct name changing will change that.

If you don't believe me check George's DNA against that of the current head of the Battenberg family.

 

[Pepper]

These last few posts indicate to me why Europe is having such a difficult time dealing with immigrants in their midst.

 

[StarSong]

Sorry for the meander, AC. Was responding to a question by Holly about whether early 20th century immigrants to the US tended to teach their children the languages of their native lands.

 

[rgp]

So the topic has changed from Prince Harry & Meghan expecting a baby to various SF member's personal ancestry?

Start another thread.

Have you ever been to a party..a picnic.., perhaps in a tavern or club? Conversations drift from one topic to another all the time. No different here.

 

[Sunny]

For once, I agree with you, rgp. Conversations do drift, inevitably. Sometimes this can be frustrating to the person who originally introduced the topic, but nothing can be done about it. (Actually,
this one stayed on topic longer than most of them do!)

 

[Elsie]

To the person who originally introduced your topic.........pretend it wasn't taken off course and say more about it as though it hadn't. If you care to.