Alice was born in France. When she was 20, she moved to Australia, where she lived for another 20 years before moving to Canada. Now, a new friend in Canada asks her, 'where are you from?' How should Alice answer? France or Australia?
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3That's entirely up to Alice, and likely will depend on how she thinks of herself. One of my co-workers is an immigrant from Italy, but will identify his current town of residence if asked where he's from (and you can't tell he's an immigrant from his accent). Another co-worker makes a point of telling you where he was born, even though he also doesn't sound like an immigrant. – Jeff Zeitlin Feb 03 '23 at 12:58
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4This isn't a question about English usage, but about modern society and identity. – Colin Fine Feb 03 '23 at 13:34
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Maybe worth mentioning that asking 'Where are you from?' can cause offence. Plenty of black Britons will tell you that when they say, e.g. 'Birmingham', the asker persists and says 'No, where are you really from?' A recent incident led to the enforced resignation of a royal aide. The question can be perceived as a 'microagression'. I know a guy of East Asian ancestry (way back) who is from Croydon; his parents were born there, and his grandparents. He gets it all the time. – Michael Harvey Feb 03 '23 at 13:57
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3said royal aide wasn't fired for asking someone where they are from, they were fired for not accepting the answer and being very impolite about that. – Borgh Feb 03 '23 at 14:13
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She would say that she's from France. But she would usually qualify that with "originally," as in: "I'm originally from France, but I moved here from Australia."
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She might say that. That would be a succinct and thorough answer. But she does not have to say that. She could say I moved here from Australia, and omit France entirely. That would also be a true answer. She might also reply I'm from Estevan (SK) and just leave it at that. – EllieK Feb 03 '23 at 17:52
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