8 ms·
Why do we call people expats and not rich migrants or something like that?
by ersiees 4y ago
Why do we call people expats and not rich migrants or something like that?
- mr90210 4y ago- Basketball players are athletes - Not all athletes are basketball players
- jimbob45 4y agoExpats expect to come home at some point in their lives. Emigrants (the word I think you were looking for) leave for good. https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/97835/difference-in-usage-between-expat-and-emigrant https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/97835/difference...
- hahaxdxd123 4y agoIf he had a family there, it seems to me like he was a migrant until the political circumstances forced him out.
- carlmr 4y ago>Emigrants (the word I think you were looking for) Emigrants leave and immigrants come. It's two sides of the same coin. You can't emigrate without immigrating. Except if you manage to become stateless and remain on international territory. Migrants is just the term without the direction. Which is unnecessary if you're not talking about the country they leave or move to.
- 908B64B197 4y agoThere's a legal distinction. At least in America. An immigrant has an intent to settle, an expat doesn't. In America, one could theoretically lose work authorization should he refer or present himself as an immigrant.
- cutemonster 4y agoThat's what I've read, too, i.e. intent to settle, or not. Maybe wanting to move forever (i.e. migrant) is more common, if one is from a poorer country, which could explain why some others here thought that "immigrant" implied "poor and less educated".
- adastra22 4y agoUh, no. The only legal definition of expat in US law is someone who gives up their citizenship or green card.
- 908B64B197 4y agoTechnically yes. The legal term for someone on temporary work authorization without an intent to immigrate would be something like "non-immigrant alien resident". The common term would be... expat.
- adastra22 4y agoThe common term, yes. But the legal definition of expat is: 2) Expatriate The term “expatriate” means— (A) any United States citizen who relinquishes his citizenship, and (B) any long-term resident of the United States who ceases to be a lawful permanent resident of the United States (within the meaning of section 7701(b)(6) ).
- nonethewiser 4y agoWell, many arent rich for starters
- dariosalvi78 4y agothat's what migrants who are not poor like to call themselves
- amrocha 4y agoBecause US and EU citizens think that "immigrant" is a dirty word for people from poor countries. To all the other people talking about intent to settle or not: read the post. The author lived in China for 20 years and built a family there. They're not an "expat" under any technical definition of the word.
- lmm 4y ago> To all the other people talking about intent to settle or not: read the post. The author lived in China for 20 years and built a family there. They're not an "expat" under any technical definition of the word. And yet he's leaving. He calls the US "home". So evidently he was an expat.
- amrocha 4y agoHe repeatedly talks about abandoning his plans to build a life in China. Changing plans when the government decides you're the enemy doesn't invalidate decisions taken before that.
- lmm 4y ago> He repeatedly talks about abandoning his plans to build a life in China. No he doesn't. He says it once, in the tagline, and gives no details.
- refurb 4y agoThis is silly. I migrated to the US from a wealthy country and I am an immigrant. I've also lived temporarily in other countries, and therefore was an expat. It's not hard to understand.
- amrocha 4y agoWell yes, going by the dictionary definitions that's true, and I commend you for adopting the immigrant term. I'm an immigrant too, and proud of it. At the same time, it's also clear that the status of the country determines whether people call themselves immigrants or expats. In the US people are immigrants, in Japan they're expats, for example. US citizens in particular very rarely refer to themselves as immigrants in my experience.
- favaq 4y ago[flagged]
- varjag 4y agoYou sure your ESL class is a bigger contribution to a host economy than a skilled welder?
- favaq 4y ago[flagged]
- CydeWeys 4y agoAll those immigrant tech workers in the US are assuredly adding more to the economy than they are taking. (And yes, they are immigrants on the path to US citizenship, not expats.) Your argument makes no sense.
- varjag 4y agoWhy, you can still be useful but only marginally so. For instance the demand for ESL classes is largely driven by school curriculum, which in China is set by the government rather than organic market forces. Welding, on the other hand, is necessary for physical production of certain goods. It can be argued about second order effects from learning a language but from purely libertarian economic POV a welder creates more added value.
- ClumsyPilot 4y agoAll the Corporate lobbyists must be immigrants then!
- hayst4ck 4y agoWhile there are very jaded views about cultural superiority and other things like that. I think the truth is probably less cynical. I can move to japan and marry a Japanese wife, work for a Japanese company, pay Japanese taxes, and speak fluent Japanese, but I will never be Japanese because my skin is white. People can move to America, and as long as you speak English without an accent, there is an assumption that you are American. If the place you move will assimilate you, then I would call that migrancy. If the place you move will never accept you, then I would call that ex-patriotism. People who move to civil societies migrate, people who move to ethnic societies become ex-patriots. I strongly recommend reading this: https://www.amacad.org/publication/what-does-it-mean-be-american https://www.amacad.org/publication/what-does-it-mean-be-amer... It really puts into perspective conservatism and liberalism by showing their contextual effects on immigration.
- kwere 4y agofunnily, foreigners can never acquire chinese citizenship unless some chinese ancestry and/or enough connection in high places. Legal Naturalizations are a few hundreds a year, on a foreign population of 850 thousands
- andrekandre 4y ago> I will never be Japanese because my skin is white. for some reason i find this statement kind of strange... are you saying "japanese" to mean "fit in as japanese" or "japanese nationality"? > and as long as you speak English without an accent, there is an assumption that you are American. n=1 but this has not been my experience.... > and speak fluent Japanese without accent?
- adastra22 4y agoNot the person you are replying to, but I have experience here. It’s both. For most Japanese, nationality is intrinsically tied to ethnicity, and cannot be changed.
- justusw 4y agoI would argue that the path to Japanese citizenship is easier than being seen as Japanese. One is a pre-defined legal process, the other one depends on the complexities of what is cultural identity.
- varjag 4y agoExpat == anglo work migrant