Hi, Paul Quinn!   
   I read your message from  04.02.2016 14:25   
   about Hans Hoffman and Austraians.   
      
    ak>> In the English textbook (it was Hans Hoffman's English   
    ak>> teaching course available in Russia) I saw this:   
      
    ak>> I am Australian   
    ak>> I am German   
      
    ak>> Should it be "I am an Australian" or we can speak both   
    ak>> variants?   
      
    PQ> You could get by with using either one, and most people   
    PQ> wouldn't give it a second thought. English isn't as 'picky' as   
    PQ> German, and I'll tell you why I think that.   
      
    PQ> Your question reminded me of a speech given by J.F. Kennedy in   
    PQ> 1963, in which he used the words "Ich Bin ein Berliner". I   
    PQ> remembered there was some consternation at the way he phrased   
    PQ> the statement, and did some (actual) research tonight to find   
    PQ> out why. Here's what I came up with:   
      
    PQ> http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/08/the-rea   
   -meaning-of-ich-bin - ein-berliner/309500/   
      
   I see you point, although you compare German and English articles. I just read   
   long ago that if we say about a nationality we should use "a".   
      
    PQ> (All on one line, BTW.)   
      
    PQ> I quote from it... "Afterward it would be suggested that   
    PQ> Kennedy had got the translation wrong that by using the article   
    PQ> ein before the word Berliner, he had mistakenly called himself   
    PQ> a jelly doughnut. In fact, Kennedy was correct. To state Ich   
    PQ> bin Berliner would have suggested being born in Berlin, whereas   
    PQ> adding the word ein implied being a Berliner in spirit. His   
    PQ> audience understood that he meant to show his solidarity."   
      
    PQ> What's not stated, and I'm guessing, is that there may have   
    PQ> been a delicious pastry called 'a Berliner'. :)   
      
   PS: A nice speech about democracy and freedom by President of the country   
   where Negro people were treated as second sort people. The canceling of the   
   segregation was a good time ahead of Kennedy's speech in Berlin.   
      
   Bye, Paul!   
   Alexander Koryagin   
   ENGLISH_TUTOR 2016   
      
   --- Paul's Win98SE VirtualBox   
    * Origin: Quinn's Post - Maryborough, Queensland, OZ (3:640/384)