When I showed my uncle my shiny new
Portuguese national identity card and declared that I was Portuguese, he very dryly replied, “I could’ve told you that without the ID.” Of course, he meant that I am very clearly of Portuguese descent and have been all my life. And in America, we all walk around declaring that we are Portuguese, or Italian, or whatever the nationality… but what most of us mean is
Portuguese-American, Italian-American, or an American who has parents or ancestors from another country. Living abroad, I have learned that this is an American construct. Even though all of my ancestry is Portuguese, I cannot declare that I am Portuguese in London. If you are Portuguese in London, it means you are ACTUALLY Portuguese. I even have a friend who declared herself half American (in other words, she has an American parent). And I can assure you that she was not referring to
Native American. Perhaps it is because I grew up in a sea of American immigrants, but I found this assertion of being half American because one of your parents is American to be disorienting. In my neighbourhood,
most of us dissected our lineages and combined as appropriate. Such an exercise for me was easy because my parents’ families are from the same
mid Atlantic island. But for most Americans, this is a more convoluted operation. My best friend is half Irish and half Portuguese. And I don’t remember the various fractions of most of my other friends, but they are various fractions of Portuguese, French, and other various European countries. However, earlier in 2009, my perspective has shifted again. Now I can declare that I am Portuguese in any country, whether in London or in Lisbon: I am Portuguese. I have always been proud of my heritage and I am very excited to be connected to my ancestors in this new way, even if it is just on paper.
When I showed my uncle my shiny new Portuguese national identity card and declared that I was Portuguese, he very dryly replied, “I could’ve told you that without the ID.” Of course, he meant that I am very clearly of Portuguese descent and have been all my life. And in America, we all walk around declaring that we are Portuguese, or Italian, or whatever the nationality… but what most of us mean is Portuguese-American, Italian-American, or an American who has parents or ancestors from another country. Living abroad, I have learned that this is an American construct. Even though all of my ancestry is Portuguese, I cannot declare that I am Portuguese in London. If you are Portuguese in London, it means you are ACTUALLY Portuguese. I even have a friend who declared herself half American (in other words, she has an American parent). And I can assure you that she was not referring to Native American. Perhaps it is because I grew up in a sea of American immigrants, but I found this assertion of being half American because one of your parents is American to be disorienting. In my neighbourhood, 
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