🔴 American English is the Best English | Cloud English Podcast Episode 41 

“America” is not a continent

@@CloudEnglish Luke, you say that America is not a continent because you were taught that way. You should research other cultures' views before making a statement like that, at least if you want to consider your audience who are not native English speakers. The conception of continents varies between English and Spanish speakers due to differences in geographic and cultural education. In many Spanish-speaking countries, it is taught that there are five continents: Europe, America, Africa, Asia and Oceania, which includes Australia. Instead, in English-speaking countries, as well as in several countries in Western Europe and Asia, it is taught that there are seven continents, by dividing America into North and South America, and adding Antarctica. This difference in teaching leads to confusion when talking about "America" in general. Spanish speakers refer to America as a single continent that includes both South America and North America. Therefore, saying that America is a continent or not is a cultural matter.

When aliens look down on the planet from space, all they say is brow, green, blue, and white. They will likely not be concerned about such names. The point is this. When we speak in a given language, the context of any statement contains the language of the statement. You want me to present the Spanish-speaking perspective. Why not go a step further and ask me to elaborate on how all 6,000+ languages on the planet speak about the western hemisphere? I don't do that because implied in everything I say is that I am speaking English, and English speakers refer to these as either "The Americas" or "North America" and "South America". Doing it your way would be a very boring 12-hour video just covering my bases. I'm not arguing what it's called in Spanish. The video is in English. I am teaching English. And everything sits within that context. @@erickchavez7681

​@@CloudEnglish Hi Luke, thank you for reading my comment and taking the time to respond. I really appreciate it. Indeed, you are right; all that you teach is in the English language, and that includes your culture. It's just that I thought it would have been better if you had replied with something like your last sentence, 'I'm not arguing what it's called in Spanish. The video is in English. I am teaching English. And everything sits within that context,' rather than just 'America is not a continent.' Thank you and stay safe.

Fair point. I probably should have. But on the topic of language context. I would love to explore this topic in a future video. How does one's native language shape their brain and their worldview? Simple things like whether it is one continent or two. Or the fact that certain colors exist or don't exist in some languages. How do these things shape our worldview? @@erickchavez7681