Re: Maya Angelou died (28-5-2014)

On 2024-05-30, Ross Clark wrote:

On 30/05/2024 7:34 p.m., Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:

On 2024-05-29 10:59:23 +0000, Ross Clark said:
 

African-American writer and activist.

 
African American? She was born in the USA of American parents, lived in
the USA, worked in the USA, and died in the USA. She was American. She
may have had some ancestors from Africa, but that doesn't make her
African. I have very recent ancestors from Ireland (including my
mother), but I am not Irish.

>
Nor was she African. "African-American" (note hyphen) is a standard term
for Americans with African ancestry (within the last few centuries, that
is). Wikipedia also calls her just "American" (at the top), but later
considers her "African American" (no hyphen). It's clear that her
membership in that ethnic group had a great deal to do with her life and
work. (She did actually live in Africa for a few years in the 1960s.)

Is there a reason why some people insist it should not be hyphenated?
It looks strange to me (especially in comparison with all the other
Xyz-American forms).


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