The Truth About Uncle Sam and Calling Americans Yankee
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- Опубликовано: 21 апр 2024
- Discover the captivating history behind the iconic Uncle Sam! From colonial caricatures to real-life inspirations, delve into the origins of America's beloved symbol. Uncover the truth behind the legend in this intriguing exploration.
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Special thanks to Melissa Hollick ruclips.net/user/hollick64 for singing the British vocals and putting the music together for us. :-)
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Love her voice.
She is singing on some of Simon's videos before, but I do not remember that she got credit for it. I even asked who it was on one.
I was coming to ask again until I saw this credit for her....
You can't just describe "Nude and Voluptuous Native woman Riding an Armadillo and Brandishing a Tomahawk" and just leave it.
Wth man? You gotta tell us how the hell that came about.
It sounds strangely arousing. I was hoping for a picture.
Rule 34 been around since the dawn of time we can only assume. 😋 -Daven
@@TodayIFoundOut hahahaha
I was thinking the same thing. Like damn why we gotta go with an old guy? 🤣
Thanks for putting the music in and not just reading the lyrics out load. Adds a lot.
I've heard that exact version of Yankee Doodle somewhere and now it's bothering me. I'm thinking Simon or Daven did a video specifically on the song a while back with the same audio clips.
I'm very disappointed that Simon didn't whistle along with the tunes.
I mean, honor your name, man
I recall hearing a story about an American GI from the deep south who was stationed in Britian during WW2. He absolutely hated being call a Yank by the Brits.
We still use it as a pejorative here.
I had to tell my British stepmother why Southern American soldiers in WWII would get into fights if you called them Yanks. She was amazed that Southerners were still angry about the Civil War.
I still don't like being called a Yank. 😂😂
It's actually hilarious. They've managed to fully reverse their intent for the word just by being so thin skinned about a war their ancestors started and couldn't finish.
@@jonathanbrown6034 youre no better then them, clearly you havent moved on from the war either
Once a friend found himself living in England for a while. When he came back to the US he said, "Usually the British were polite to a fault except they kept calling me a yank"
Better being called “Yank” rather than “wanker”
@@alfiegrace Americans don't even use that word ...
That must've been rich- surrendering while Yankee Doodle Dandy played in the background 😂
It’s fascinating hearing this version of the origin of “yankee.” I live in the Netherlands, and in Dutch, “Jantje” (Yan-tcha) would mean “little John.” However, I’ve been told by folks here that while “Jan” and “Kees” are both super common Dutch names, they were especially common amongst the poor and working-class Dutch at the time. So the story here, as I’ve learned it, has pretty much been that any person that went to colonize Nieuwe Amsterdam/New York instead of “making their fortune” in the Caribbean, Indonesia, or Bengal (aka, enslaving people in plantations in their much more profitable colonies) were seen, as you said, as backwater hicks. So basically, the Dutch elites in the the Netherlands and in the more profitable colonies considered anyone (of any nationality) who would move to a place as desolate and purposeless as New England must just be so poor, common, and desperate that there was nowhere else they would be wanted. In short, “Jan-Kees” was smooshing together two common names for poor folks at the time as a classist jab at their choice to go to New England.
It isn’t too different from this version, but it’s interesting that there are so many variations on legends like this!
That is so interesting, in both this video and your description, I wish the European expansion into the U.S. stopped at the Yankees. Poor people escaping persecution and judgement to live freely, no need for government or armies or even to expand any further. But that was never possible. Europeans have enslaved, exploited, then deserted every single continent on this planet. No one gives a shit about “polite society” bs, it’s fake and meaningless. Liars and thieves pretending to be somehow superior than those that they exploit when it couldn’t be more opposite.
That's also what I recall learning to be the origin of 'yankee': it referring to Dutch plebs who were 'all' called Jan and Kees.
I’m from Billerica, Massachusetts. The Yankee Doodle in our area is from Billerica. He was tarred and feathered by the British for some reason. We still have the “Yankee doodle” parade every homecoming
Edit: his name was Thomas Ditson Jr. he was a minuteman from town. You can read the story by googling Thomas ditson jr Billerica Ma
Fun fact: the last evolutionary form of the dandy macaroni was in the Urban neighborhoods circa 1980. It was now MAC Daddy. If you were a (what's now known as metrosexual) high maintenance man who was well spoken and charismatic. You were a MAC. The more you know 🌈⭐
I was just talking about this like an hour before you uploaded it, and wondering where the term Yankee and where Uncle Sam came from. Thanks for clarifying and keep listening to my conversations to teach me more interesting things.
My daughter heard me playing this video, when the song played she did the barney dance... never noticed the melody is the same.
"Native Americans beware of foreign influence" There's irony for you.
You learn an awful lot from watching this channel
And a lot of awful too.
That is the point.
fun fact: Simon isn't always right.
@@tripsaplenty1227Blasphemy
@tripsaplenty1227 blame the writers. He just reads the scripts.
The Statue of Liberty was gifted to the United States in 1876, but wasn’t fully assembled until 1886 in October 3rd, of the same year.
huh?
@@devonwoodrup 2:11 the Statue of Liberty was given to the United States as a tribute by France in honor of the nation’s centennial anniversary of independence from Britain.
@Irish381 Famous etiquette author Emily Post was a child when her father served as lead engineer for the erection of the statue, and Emily played inside the enormous hollow pieces before they were assembled.
@@suzbone Of this I am well aware, there are many books, articles, and documentary films about the Statue of Liberty 🗽, but the one that I found most interesting is by Ken Burns.
It follows the story behind the Statue its creator and the voyage to New York, and the restoration of it in 1986.
I saw a music site years ago which said the tune was a longtime British song of derision with words adjusted for whoever was the group being ridiculed. It said macaroni was first used in a version composed to ridicule British debutants whose families sent them to Italy to immerse them in the symbols of classical European culture. Macaroni was considered a posh gourmet food then.
Uncle Sam and Columbia are also Superheroes from DC Comics !!
On the alternate Earth of Earth-10 where the Nazi's won WW2 after a certain Kryptonian landed in Bavaria instead of Kansas...the Freedom Fighters led by Uncle Same opposed him !!
TROY NY REPRESENT!!! We have statues of him everywhere, a huge piece of local culture
Brilliant video - amazing work!
I loved the Limey dig on the colonists. Which I assume they sang right up until yankee doodle shuffled out that beatdown at Yorktown.
HA!!! 100%!!
To the old South mindset the term Yankee didn't just mean Northerner, it was said & meant as a slur with the most derogatory intent possible, even several magnitudes worse than they meant with the n-word towards Blacks. I couldn't hardly believe it when I lived there for four years in the 80's, but yeah.
I will agree. I lived in VA during the mid 90's and went camping several times. I actually heard the term Carpetbagger from a very elderly African American woman.
And yet I don’t know a single northerner who gives one shit about being called a yankee by southerners.
@MotoNomad350 Exactly! At the time I didn't give 2 shits about the Civil War OR the term Yankee. But they acted like it had only been a few decades since it ended. They were even doing battle reenactments frequently. Plus the phrase The South Will Rise Again was still a common phrase. I thought boy, sure are stuck in the past & still butthurt...
It’s still being used btw. My SIL casually threw it out in a conversation one day and she backpedaled very quickly when I asked her about her use of “all Yankees”. I am from Illinois, and I was surprised she didn’t give herself whiplash with her 180.
@@MotoNomad350 hahahahahahahahaha
Let us not forget the USMC, Uncle Sam's Misguided Children!
Rah
were you recruited from a jail or insane asylum?
Once again you guys astound.
However I feel you should know why we Australians refer to an Americas as a Seppo, or Seppos in the plural.
It of course is from rhyming slang. The story goes that during WW2 while on shore leave whilst docked in our harbours the America GIs would do as many men do and "chase some skirt." As is today there would be alcohol involved and tall stories told and man would fail their quest and just get drunk. In Australia if you tell tall stories or untruths you are said to be "full of shit." Alcohol also induces courage and diminishes senses, in particular pain in this case. So drunk American soldiers were like tanks, as in they were strong and could take a beating, like tanking in computer games today.
Also we're sorta lazy and just add an "O" to the first syllable to make a nickname eg Jonathan becomes Jonno.
So the progression is as follows.
Yank --> yank tank --> septic tank --> Seppo
In effect taking it full circle back to being an insult.
Keep up the great content ❤️
Came here especially for this comment. Both grandfather's and an uncle (who served in Vietnam) referred to Americans as 'Seppo's'.
I was always told it was septic tank-> seppo yank lol but they’re definitely both said with more affection these days.
What a beautiful voice the singer has ❤
Yeth!
This was hilarious. Etymology of slang terms is fascinating. Definitely check out Stan Freberg’s work. He has a skit specifically on this exact topic spun as a disagreement as to how the song is to be played. The fife player and the drummer want to do it one way and the singer and director wants to do it Uncle Sam’s way. Funny as a crutch! Like listening to Saturday Night Live.
Trigger Warning: Period specific biases are often lampooned or embraced because, 60’s.
Loving the Stan Freberg call out!
@@WaddedBliss endless laughs for sure. My brother and I used to go back and forth at dinner doing the lines verbatim. “Whaddaya meeen ya cooked the turkey, Charlie!?”
I live relatively near the real Uncle Sam’s grave in Oakwood Cemetery in Troy, NY
I used to as well. I loved hanging out in Oakwood
Drive past it every day!
Oakwood is a beautiful cemetery! Troy is a very fascinating city. I worked at the library downtown for almost 5 years...
Fascinating isn't a word I would use to describe troy.
I don’t live anywhere near that grave. I live near a store and another store.
Whatever amount of AI you are using for the songs and stuff keep it right there no more no less. One of the best Simon videos I’ve seen across channels
I've only heard those deep southerners say Yankee to northerners
Yeah it was pretty popular when I was young, but now it is hardly ever used, at least in my area (upstate South Carolina), unless as a description for someone to be able to identify the person of interest by. But even then, it almost always is used without the negative connotations that went along with it in the past.
Well spoken history lesson, Sir.
That ancient cartoon you showed at the beginning with the meat shop and sugar cubes running around was really weird. Anyway, my great grandfather on my motherst side was a "Wobbly." He reportedly got chased out of the Midwest to Seattle because of his political activities. This is a point of pride in my family!
That cartoon probably refers to rationing.
Uncle Sam is alive and well in the Military.
To this day its still common to say US Army means Uncle Sam Aint Released Me Yet.
Excellent as usual.
And a feather in your cap too, for an excellent vid 😊
The armadillo is a tactical assault opossom.
Dude! I've always wanted to know where that term originated! 🤙
Best channel
JOHN PAUL JONES WAS A FIGHTIN’ MAN, A FIGHTIN’ MAN WAS HE
this new england yankee enjoyed this entertaining and educational episode quite a bit. thank you!
Who sang those songs? That is a great voice!
I've been to his grave in New York. At first, he had a simple, flat grave stone. But one of his later descendants commissioned a tall stone, which tells Sam's history.
Now Simon's going to do a sing-along channel 😂😂😂 16:06
Are you alright, Simon? In your most recent videos you look slimmer and paler than usual.
Great video as always, hopefully you're doing okay.
Oh my gosh! 😱 is this where we got “The Mac” like he thinks he’s The Mac. Or the song Return of the Mac? 😂😂😂😂😂😂
The songs in this are lit. I was singing Yankee Doodle all day after this. 😂
I never knew all American’s were/ are labeled Yankees. I know it would be considered an unacceptable insult for a southerner to be called a yankee, but only for being depicted as a northerner.
damn i didnt even know there was a logic behind "yankee" i just thought americans were weird.
Both things can be true at the same time! 😂
Well…we are. I mean you’re not wrong. XD
The music Yankee Doodle was a British song mocking the American Colonies. We turned their song against them, when we drove Britain out of America.
They called us Yankee Doodles…Yankee stuck in The War Between The States. We became the Northern Yankees and the Southern Johnny Rebs or Rebel Army.
the bull dude for britain always reminded me of winston churchill
Whenever I hear "Yankee" I think immediately of the New York Yankee MLB team.
In New York it tends to mean New Englanders. In baseball circles it means New York. To southerners it means the East, Midwest or West. To the rest of the world, it means U.S. residents.
Simon and his writers would have a chuckle at the tour de force of radio play drama that is Stan Freberg presents: The United States of America, Vol 1 & 2.
The actual events and sentiments lampooned were chosen because they were rife with worthy material. Deep dive some of that with the Freberg skits as launch boards into more serious analysis.
The lore goes so deep I had no idea. And I’m quite the avid armchair historian and an American. I knew the meat can ‘U. S.’ Story but I had no idea it went way deeper.
Hey Simon, 👋
I love you
2:38 John Bull looks like it was inspired by Ernest Borgnine.
So being hawaiian love the Lyric saying "never had an uncle named sam" thanks kapuna.....
0:49-0:58
Just a simple inquiry, but.... maybe we should try this old symbol of the New World? You know, just try it and see how it works out?
I was hoping Simon will sing the song
Ayyyy lake George. My hometown
What the heck happen to Simon’s lip at 19:06?
My opa came to germany with the us army. Always nice to learn about this history
Yo but why is the one about the French and Indian war a banger?
John Bull looks like Trump.
Maybe he doesn't like getting peed on as much tho
I said the same thing!😂
"It wenches without passion."
This is so 18th century it hurts, lol.
Nice, a two for one! 🎉
I have heard this story, too.
the poster by James Montgomery Flagg is actually a self-portrait.
Are those new glasses?
Troy is my hometown, lot of history.
Very fascinating city! I worked at the Troy Public Library for almost 5 years!
My parents are from Troy. When I tell people I’m from the town Uncle Sam is from, everyone says: “He’s a real person?”.
@@kurtvonfricken6829 I’ve gotten that and “who?” Surprisingly
Aw, come on, Simon! We wanted to hear YOU sing the songs!
You're taking about so so many characters, items, and images, but not showing most of them. I'd have liked to have seen the images and how they are similar to others. I cba to rewatch and Google them all though.
I really like the singing in this video.
I'm from the Northeast & have called myself a Yankee when abroad or in the South. It's a neutral kind of quaint term no one really thinks about beyond baseball; Southerners may get miffed by it & Westerners confused. It's funny though, calling all Americans Yankee is like calling the Netherlands Holland. We never say Yank though, not even Southerners AFAIK. My favorite use of the word is for those Japanese biker delinquents, "yanki"
In 2015, the family history company MyHeritage researched Uncle Sam's family tree and claims to have tracked down his living relatives.
Any still living in Troy?
Uncle Sam was the first guy George Washington met up with in attempt to put together a kick ass team. They hunted down Benedict Arnold after he un-alived Abraham Lincoln in Wear wolf form.
Most Brits are not familiar with this use of "thick" (as hasty pudding). It means dense, foolish, or dimwit.
I like that singers voice. Who is she?
Who the hell is this singer? She's incredible!
Walter Bots also looks exactly like the Grinch 😂
Nice.
And the Yankee Doodle song was written not far (about 3 miles) from the home of Uncle Sam.
I remember hearing about the British Regulars jweeed Americans with the song yankee Dolittle, only to be forced back to the city this time with the colonials were singing it.
When you sing a song that that mocks you and make it your own!
"that's a lovely, lovely voice"
I know you want to know, so this is what it said
"We are coming, Father Pershing a
billion tons or more !"
And
Even the frankfurters, mighty dogs
of
ar, forgot their Daschhund
ancestry and answered the clarion
call.
Here in the South that word is "damnyankee". One word, not two.
I always thought Uncle Sam was personification of Abraham Lincoln calling youth to join Union army.
Ive also heard Army soldiers sometimes say their Uncle paid to send them around the world.
I am so totally spangled.
Sort of how like people think "Stay Calm and Carry On" was a rallying cry, and not a plan after surrender
who knew military can make an effective advertisement
International Workers of the World (IWW). AKA the I Won't Work party and / or the Wobblies.
And here I was thinking that hip hop created the diss track. Yankee Doodle dandy indeed.
I remember hearing the "thick as hasty pudding" line when I was a kid and thinking they meant the NUMBER of soldiers. As for Yankee Doodle itself, it sounds like the revolutionary war equivalent of a dank meme. XD Did Sam see this episode yet? Make sure he doesn't or all your brain blazes will have memes a couple centuries out of date loooooooooooooool!
🤯
I remember hearing years ago that the English in New Amsterdam referred to the Dutch as "John Cheese" as a prerogative because the Dutch were so well known for their cheese making. The story goes on to say that the Dutch in turn would refer to the English with the same words, only in Dutch. John becomes "Yan" and cheese becomes "Kees." Thus in the early 1600's "Yan-kees" is Dutch for John cheese.
And John Cleese’s either father or grandfather had the last name of Cheese, then changed the spelling.
That 'Native Americans' be afraid of Foreign Influence flag is kinda funny if you think about it from a certain angle...
Nice introduction about Yankee
The donkey for the Democratic Party was created and popularized during the presidential campaigns of Andrew Jackson in the 1820’s. 20 years before Thomas Nast was born.
Vermont tries to claim Kohnny appleseed too
its damn catchy
Bit of Dutch insight.
Yankert would be closer to cry baby, which also kind of makes sense kn this context. Whereas Jantje (J being pronounced like a Y) would be Little John.