Are there an unusually small number of Americans in AH?

[bumpercars]

Any reason why you're counting small English-speaking nations like Australia/NZ/Ireland in this total, but excluding much larger ones like India (~230 million English speakers), Nigeria (125 million), or Pakistan (108 million)?

You're right that biases shape our thinking about who in the world speaks English. However, it's also worth noting that India and Pakistan both ban porn, which probably curtails AH membership from either location.

Also, for statistical purposes, I currently live in the US, although that could change in the future.

 

[Bramblethorn]

I thought about this some more. My experience over the last four years is that non-western (European/US.... whatever you call it) stories stand out as a rarity.

"Non-Western stories" and "non-Western authors" aren't the same thing. There are authors from non-Western backgrounds who write stories in US/European settings, or generic settings which many readers will assume to be USA. (Chimamanda Ngoza Adichie has a great bit about how, as a black girl growing up in Nigeria, she used to write stories about blonde-haired blue-eyed children playing in the snow, eating apples and drinking ginger beer, none of which she had ever experienced.) I've edited for an Indian author here who is probably assumed to be American by most of the people reading their stories.

But for stories in non-Western (real-world) settings: I'd agree that they're rare in proportion, but there are still quite a few of them around. For instance, searching on "salwar", a common South Asian/Central Asian garment, finds 856 stories, and that's just one word.

 

[AchtungNight]

I’m from Texas here. That’s a part of America.

 

[LoneMilf]

What I've noticed is that Americans are much more likely to identify themselves with the city, state or area they're from rather than their nationality.

There are so many ads in the Personals that are looking for e.g. people in the North West. I always feel the urge to explain that Denmark is very much in the north and probably the west too - but there are enough Americans here for their ads to find targets.

I would be very surprised if the demographics of the AH are significantly different.

 

[WCSGarland]

Denmark is northeast from here.

 

[LoneMilf]

Denmark is northeast from here.

Depends on where here is

 

[WCSGarland]

Then again, if I'm willing to travel twice as far, I suppose it could be said Denmark is northwest of here.

 

[Katie_Mae]

Then again, if I'm willing to travel twice as long, I suppose it could be said Denmark is northwest of here.

What are compass directions but perception anyway? Someone once said to me "you must be from the South" to indicate they though I was from the North.

 

[WCSGarland]

What are compass directions but perception anyway? Someone once said to me "you must be from the South" to indicate they though I was from the North.

Now who is messing with whose head?

 

[Kumquatqueen]

What I've noticed is that Americans are much more likely to identify themselves with the city, state or area they're from rather than their nationality.

There are so many ads in the Personals that are looking for e.g. people in the North West. I always feel the urge to explain that Denmark is very much in the north and probably the west too - but there are enough Americans here for their ads to find targets.

Lots of planets have a North. And, presumably, a Northwest.

 

[StillStunned]

I've commenced on a project of gathering origin info on members of AH. I've gone through 4 so far, 2 U.S. and 2 not. My fifth is @AwkwardMD. What does "Overe There" mean?

Please be aware that some of us prefer not to have people speculating too much about who we are and where we're from. I'm not ashamed of writing here on Lit, but I have clients that might prefer not to be associated with it. And not just the 2P POV thing either.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Lots of planets have a North.

Christopher Eccleston, Doctor Who

 

[M_K_Babalon]

You're right that biases shape our thinking about who in the world speaks English. However, it's also worth noting that India and Pakistan both ban porn, which probably curtails AH membership from either location.

Also, for statistical purposes, I currently live in the US, although that could change in the future.

If so... India show as fuck exports it, and puts it online. When I made a twitter account for this name, there was about a two week span of Indian porn in my feed. A lot of it looked like rape, and what little I know of the country... probably was.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

Many websites are american websites, so it's a given we'd be the majority users. Like reading a book, or a story and it's somewhat common to assume characters are white, unless stated otherwise.

If on mobile, turn your phone or tablet sideways. Some of us are brave enough to put our city/state. I'm not important enough to be doxxed, if it happens, it's not like people are gonna go looking for my place. I don't live where one wants to meddle. I'm not Nick Fuentes either--it won't be mace.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Christopher Eccleston, Doctor Who

The Ninth Doctor, correct.

Please be aware that some of us prefer not to have people speculating too much about who we are and where we're from. I'm not ashamed of writing here on Lit, but I have clients that might prefer not to be associated with it.

You could probably mention a country, unless you're actually from the Solomon Islands or Pitcairn...

I happily admit to being from London, given there's 10 million of us, plus all the people who live in the Southeast who tell foreigners they're from London, so that's about 30 million. 15 million possibilities, if you think I'm female. Anything else, I may or may not be lying about at any moment, to enable plausible deniability. I've identified two people on Lit (it helps when you know your friends include the kind of pervs who would write porn) and been ID'd via anecdotes on other sites.

it's also worth noting that India and Pakistan both ban porn, which probably curtails AH membership from either location.

It probably means their nationals learn how to use VPNs and other tools to get round that ban, very quickly, and may partly explain the large number of skilled computer workers from India. Certainly in the Middle East you can buy receivers for TV and such that bypass the heavily-censored local TV. I actually enjoyed the challenge of following films with large black circles covering most of the action. And lots of Ken Hom cookery shows.

 

[StillStunned]

You could probably mention a country, unless you're actually from the Solomon Islands or Pitcairn...

My profession and my location would limit it to a few dozen individuals, if that.

 

[Katie_Mae]

It probably means their nationals learn how to use VPNs and other tools to get round that ban, very quickly.

Certainly I know that's the case for anyone I've known who lives in China.

 

[Voboy]

This is a US website administered out of the USA, and the AH is in English. I’d assume most Americans in here see no need to assert their nationality; in contrast, other nationalities might.

Just based on what state I’m in vs what state I’m from, I suspect that if I weren’t American, I’d be constantly going out of my way to show that I wasn’t American. People like me might be skewing your perceptions, OP.

 

[Duleigh]

I've long felt that an unusually high number of the people who I happen to discover their nationality are not American. (If someone could re-structure this sentence, I'd love to see it.) It feels like maybe 90% aren't American. I've often wondered why. It's crossed my mind that the people I am interested in is a self-select group, so it may be I that am the variable here.

Do any of you have a theory?

Here are the relevant populations in millions.

NZ 5.2
Australia 26.6
Canada 40
Great Britain 68.3
Ireland 5.2

Total 145.3

U.S. 334.9

I notice that there are no Martians on the list... same old story. It's like we don't even exist to you people...

 

[StillStunned]

I notice that there are no Martians on the list... same old story. It's like we don't even exist to you people...

Like that scene in 3rd Rock From The Sun, when they're watching the Miss Universe contest. "I think it's rigged, though. All these women are from Earth."

 

[Bramblethorn]

Please be aware that some of us prefer not to have people speculating too much about who we are and where we're from. I'm not ashamed of writing here on Lit, but I have clients that might prefer not to be associated with it. And not just the 2P POV thing either.

This. Also, some of us are from more than one place.

 

[AwkwardMD]

I've commenced on a project of gathering origin info on members of AH. I've gone through 4 so far, 2 U.S. and 2 not. My fifth is @AwkwardMD. What does "Overe There" mean?

It means not "here"

 

[MelissaBaby]

It means not "here"

Having spent the last couple of weeks heavily researching the World War One era for my WIP, I now have that damn song stuck in my head.

Over there, over there,
Send the word, send the word,
Over there…

 

[AwkwardMD]

Having spent the last couple of weeks heavily researching the World War One era for my WIP, I now have that damn dong stuck in my head.

Over there, over there,
Send the word, send the word,
Over there…

I did the same when I set that 10 tears ago.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Part of the reason for the perception is the number of conversations that take place here about cultural nuance and language.

If this was a knitting site then the various cultural differences wouldn't come up very often and where everyone was from would be irrelevant. Since we are frequently discussing language our Brits, Aussies, Kiwis and the rest end up self identifying more.