I’ve looked up the term “first-generation American” on Google, but I’ve gotten a lot of mixed results. I’m currently writing an essay for a scholarship and I’m not sure if I should classify myself as a first-generation American or not. I was born outside of the United States and my family and I immigrated here. Would I just be an immigrant or a first-generation American?
If you were foreign born and were not an American citizen at birth, but have since immigrated to the US and are now a naturalized American citizen, then you can say first-generation American. If you are not now a US citizen, then you would be a first-generation migrant. If you were a US citizen at birth, then you would have been a US citizen living abroad.
Although, TBH, it’s not going to be a make-or-break for the essay. Good luck.
@skieurope Thank you so much for your comprehensive answer!
I’ve always understood it to be defined differently. First generation meaning the first generation to be born in the USA. It is ambiguous, though.
It is ambiguous, and many people use it incorrectly, but technically, US born kids to foreign born parents are second gen. @doschicos
http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/02/07/second-generation-americans/
I’ve used it and understood it with the same meaning as @doschicos . The beautiful thing about language is that as it evolves, additional meanings can become equally valid or take precedence in certain contexts. While that is the definition used by statisticians and demographers, as in the link above, I wouldn’t say that using the other meaning is “incorrect,” technically or otherwise. JMO.
Think I agree with skieurope.
From the Census:
“The Census Bureau uses the term generational status to refer to the place of birth of an individual or an individual’s parents. Questions on place of birth and parental place of birth are used to define the first, second, and third-or-higher generations. The first generation refers to those who are foreign born. The second generation refers to those with at least one foreign-born parent. The third-or-higher generation includes those with two U.S. native parents.”
I would say you are an immigrant, your kids will be first generation Americans.
I could link references supporting my definition. It is ambiguous as wiki notes in its definition. I think stating more clearly “I am the first generation of my family to immigrate to the USA” or I am the first generation in my family to be born in the USA" would be clearer and remove any ambiguity.
Part of the reason I don’t align with that definition is that I don’t believe the first generation to immigrate to the US should be considered the first generation American. I know my immigrant parents wouldn’t identify with that category because they don’t identity culturally with the country they immigrated to, but the countries they immigrated from. And from a technical standpoint, while under that definition above they would he considered “first generation Americans,” they’re not American. They’re not citizens, they’re permanent residents, which makes that a bizarre label in their case. Not saying this is relevant to the OP anymore, but if we’re going to discuss semantics anyway…
Why not go with what the govt says? But yes it’s confusing because we apply the term differently when meaning different things. Eg, OP could be a first gen American, but isn’t ‘first generation born in the US.’
Agree you may need to word this to clarify.
@lookingforward quoted:
The OP was foreign born (as were his parents, grandparents greats, etc) When the census comes to call and they ask his birth place, a foreign country will be listed. What if his parents weren’t here? Would he be any more foreign born? If the grandparents, parents, and OP all moved to the US, are the grandparents the only ‘first generation’, and his parents ‘second generation’ and then OP and siblings third generation, even though he’s foreign born, as the census defines it?
OP, I think you should define yourself how you feel, and focus the essay on your experience.
I always thought first gen american was someone who was born in the US, but had parents who were both from outside the US.
@twoinanddone I think you’re thinking of general familial generations, not immigrant ones.