Editing Americas (section)

==Terminology==
{{Subdivisions of the Americas|100px}}
{{Further|Americas (terminology)}}

=== History ===
{{Main|Naming of the Americas}}
The region was initially termed America or New India on the Mercator maps.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mercator 1587 {{!}} Envisioning the World {{!}} The First Printed Maps |url=https://lib-dbserver.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/wendt-world-maps/Mercator_1587.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20230716014333/https://lib-dbserver.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/wendt-world-maps/Mercator_1587.html |archive-date=2023-07-16 |access-date=2025-02-15 |website=lib-dbserver.princeton.edu}}</ref>

===English===
{{Main|American (word)|l1=''American'' (word)}}

[[English language|Speakers of English]] generally refer to the [[landmass]]es of North America and South America as ''the Americas'', the ''[[Western Hemisphere]]'', or the ''[[New World]]''.<ref name="Burchfield">Burchfield, R. W. 2004. ''[[Fowler's Modern English Usage]].'' ({{ISBN|0-19-861021-1}}) Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press; p. 48.</ref> The adjective ''American'' may be used to indicate something pertaining to the Americas,<ref name="OEDAMERICAN">{{OED|American}}</ref> but this term is primarily used in English to indicate something pertaining to the United States.<ref name="OEDAMERICAN" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=american|title=American|work=The American Heritage Dictionary|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt|access-date=September 8, 2014}}</ref><ref name="oxfcdn" /> Some non-ambiguous alternatives exist, such as the adjective ''Pan-American'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Pan-American|title=Definition of PAN-AMERICAN|website=Merriam-Webster}}</ref> or ''New Worlder'' as a demonym for a resident of the closely related [[New World]].<ref name="OED|New Worlder">{{OED|New Worlder}}</ref> Use of ''America'' in the hemispherical sense is sometimes retained, or can occur when translated from other languages.<ref>''Reader's Digest Oxford Complete Wordfinder''. 1993. ({{ISBN|0-276-42101-9}}) New York, US: [[Reader's Digest]] Association; p. 45.</ref> For example, the [[Association of National Olympic Committees]] (ANOC) in Paris maintains a single continental association for "America", represented by one of the five [[Olympic rings]].<ref>[http://multimedia.olympic.org/pdf/en_report_1303.pdf ''The Olympic symbols'']. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100731072159/http://multimedia.olympic.org/pdf/en_report_1303.pdf |date=July 31, 2010 }} [[International Olympic Committee]]. 2002. Lausanne: Olympic Museum and Studies Centre. The five rings of the [[Olympic symbols#Different types of flags|Olympic flag]] represent the five inhabited, participating continents: ([http://www.en.acnolympic.org/art.php?id=20008 Africa, America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100731072159/http://www.en.acnolympic.org/art.php?id=20008 |date=July 31, 2010 }}).{{cite web|url=http://multimedia.olympic.org/pdf/en_report_1303.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=February 4, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110822175428/http://multimedia.olympic.org/pdf/en_report_1303.pdf |archive-date=August 22, 2011 |df=mdy }}</ref>

American essayist [[H. L. Mencken]] said, "The Latin-Americans use Norteamericano in formal writing, but, save in Panama, prefer nicknames in colloquial speech."<ref name="Mencken">{{cite journal|last=Mencken|first=H. L.|date=December 1947|title=Names for Americans|journal=American Speech|volume=22|issue=4|pages=241–256|doi=10.2307/486658|jstor=486658}} quote at p 243.</ref> To avoid "American" one can use constructed terms in their languages derived from "United States" or even "North America".<ref name="oxfcdn">"America." ''Oxford Guide to Canadian English Usage''. ({{ISBN|0-19-541619-8}}) Fee, Margery and McAlpine, J., ed., 1997. Toronto: Oxford University Press; p. 36.</ref><ref>"American." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' ({{ISBN|0-19-214183-X}}); McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 35.</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = Estados Unidos | work = Diccionario panhispánico de dudas | publisher = [[Real Academia Española]] |language= es | date = October 2005 | url = http://buscon.rae.es/dpdI/SrvltGUIBusDPD?lema=Estados%20Unidos |access-date=November 30, 2010}}</ref> In Canada, its southern neighbor is often referred to as "the United States", "the U.S.A.", or (informally) "the States", while U.S. citizens are generally referred to as "Americans".<ref name="oxfcdn" /> Most Canadians resent being referred to as "Americans".<ref name="oxfcdn" />

===Spanish===
In Spanish, ''América'' is a single continent composed of the [[subcontinent]]s of ''América del Sur'' and ''América del Norte'', the [[land bridge]] of ''América Central'', and the islands of the ''[[Antilles|Antillas]]''. ''Americano'' or ''americana'' in Spanish refers to a person from ''América'' in a similar way that in which ''europeo'' or ''europea'' refers to a person from ''Europa''. The terms ''sudamericano/a'', ''centroamericano/a'', ''antillano/a'' and ''norteamericano/a'' can be used to more specifically refer to the location where a person may live.

Citizens of the United States of America are normally referred to by the term ''estadounidense'' (rough literal translation: "[[United Statesian]]") instead of ''americano'' or ''americana'' which is discouraged,<ref name=norteamerica>{{cite book | url=http://buscon.rae.es/dpdI/SrvltGUIBusDPD?lema=Norteam%E9rica | title=Diccionario panhispánico de dudas:Norteamérica | publisher=Real Academia Española | year=2005}}</ref><ref name=estadosunidos /> and the country's name itself is officially translated as ''Estados Unidos de América'' (United States of America), commonly abbreviated as ''Estados Unidos'' (EEUU).<ref name=estadosunidos>{{cite book | url=http://buscon.rae.es/dpd/srv/search?id=4EWtRO1VZD6v7sHSpo | title=Diccionario panhispánico de dudas: Estados Unidos | publisher=Real Academia Española | year=2005}} "debe evitarse el empleo de americano para referirse exclusivamente a los habitantes de los Estados Unidos" ("the use of the term ''americano'' referring exclusively to the United States inhabitants must be avoided")</ref> Also, the term ''norteamericano'' (North American) may refer to a citizen of the United States, though in formal writing it is less common since it is used for the inhabitants of North America.<ref>{{Cite web |last=ASALE |first=RAE- |last2=RAE |title=norteamericano, norteamericana {{!}} Diccionario de la lengua española |url=https://dle.rae.es/norteamericano?m=form |access-date=2025-03-28 |website=«Diccionario de la lengua española» - Edición del Tricentenario |language=es}}</ref>

===Portuguese===
In Portuguese, ''[[:pt:América|América]]''<ref name=AmericaPortBE>{{cite web |url=http://www.brasilescola.com/historia-da-america/paises-america.htm |title=Países da América |publisher=Brasil Escola |access-date=March 29, 2014}}</ref> is a single continent composed of ''América do Sul'' (South America), ''América Central'' (Central America) and ''América do Norte'' (North America).<ref name=AmericaME>{{cite web |url=http://www.mundoeducacao.com/geografia/o-continente-americano.htm |title=América |publisher=Mundo Educação |access-date=March 29, 2014}}</ref> It can be ambiguous, as ''América'' can be used to refer to the United States of America, but is avoided in print and formal environments.<ref name=EstadosUnidosIt>{{cite web|url=http://www.itamaraty.gov.br/servicos-do-itamaraty/enderecos-de-consulados-estrangeiros-no-brasil/e/estados-unidos |title=Estados Unidos |publisher=Itamaraty |access-date=March 29, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222194657/http://www.itamaraty.gov.br/servicos-do-itamaraty/enderecos-de-consulados-estrangeiros-no-brasil/e/estados-unidos |archive-date=February 22, 2014 |df=mdy }}</ref><ref name=EstadosUnidosESPN>{{cite web|url=http://espn.uol.com.br/time/estadosunidos|title=Estados Unidos|publisher=ESPN|access-date=March 29, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330054909/http://espn.uol.com.br/time/estadosunidos|archive-date=March 30, 2014|df=mdy-all}}</ref> The demonym 'American' (americano) is commonly used in Portuguese to refer to people from the United States, although the term 'estadounidense' also formaly exists and is preferred by those who wish to distinguish it from the continental demonym.

===French===
In French, the word ''américain'' may be used for things relating to the Americas; however, similar to English, it is most often used for things relating to the United States, with the term ''états-unien'' sometimes used for clarity. ''Panaméricain'' may be used as an adjective to refer to the Americas without ambiguity.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://gdt.oqlf.gouv.qc.ca/ficheOqlf.aspx?Id_Fiche=17571942 | title = panaméricain | publisher = Office québéqois de la langue français | year = 1978 | access-date=November 22, 2013}}</ref> French speakers may use the noun ''Amérique'' to refer to the whole landmass as one continent, or two continents, ''Amérique du Nord'' and ''Amérique du Sud''. In French, ''Amérique'' is seldom used to refer to the United States, leading to some ambiguity when it is. Similar to English usage, ''les Amériques'' or ''des Amériques'' is used to refer unambiguously to the Americas.

===Dutch===
In Dutch, the word ''Amerika'' mostly refers to the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.aadas.nl/sites/default/files/proceedings/2001_03_vanMarle.pdf |title=''aadas.nl/'' |access-date=May 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180504225404/http://www.aadas.nl/sites/default/files/proceedings/2001_03_vanMarle.pdf |archive-date=May 4, 2018 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://geheugen.delpher.nl/en/en/geheugen/pages/collectie/atlantic+world/nederlandse+emigratie+naar+noord-amerika+in+de+19e+eeuw|title=The Memory|website=geheugen.delpher.nl}}</ref> Although the United States is equally often referred to as ''de Verenigde Staten'' ("the United States") or ''de VS'' ("the US"), ''Amerika'' relatively rarely refers to the Americas, but it is the only commonly used Dutch word for the Americas. This often leads to ambiguity; and to stress that something concerns the Americas as a whole, Dutch uses a combination, namely ''Noord- en Zuid-Amerika'' (North and South America).

Latin America and Central America are generally referred to as ''Latijns Amerika'' and ''Midden-Amerika'' respectively.

The adjective ''Amerikaans'' is most often used for things or people relating to the United States. There are no alternative words to distinguish between things relating to the United States or to the Americas. Dutch uses the local alternative for things relating to elsewhere in the Americas, such as ''Argentijns'' for [[Argentine people|Argentine]], etc.