My son is in high school and is going to be an exchange student in Sweden next year.

Our family background is Swedish. His first name is a typical American name, but his middle name is Swedish, and our last name is Swedish.

For example, John Sture Andersson.

Nobody calls him Sture in the US; people can’t pronounce it. But he has been asking Swedish people who he’s met (so far, as part of the exchange program process) to call him Sture.

Is that weird; if he asks people in Sweden to call him Sture, will Swedes make fun of him or think that his request is bizarre, since he is called John in the US? And is the name “Sture” a nice name?

Thanks.

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The original was posted on /r/sweden by /u/CraftAccomplished784 at 2024-03-27 13:08:14+00:00.

  • Dannebot@leddit.danmark.partyOPMBSvenska
    1·
    6 months ago

    henfodi at 2024-03-27 15:07:13+00:00 ID: kwt32a8

    I disagree with the passport (or another administrative document) “making” anyone anything but that is again a matter of opinion.

    Like if a person has perfect cultural and linguistic understanding but no documents is more Swedish than the description the commenter above described who just speaks Swahili but has a passport.

    • Dannebot@leddit.danmark.partyOPMBSvenska
      1·
      6 months ago

      bobbylaserbones at 2024-03-27 15:37:36+00:00 ID: kwt8i6h

      No, a yank who likes meatballs and “feels connected” to Sweden is not more swedish than Somali Momo and his swedish passport. He is just a distant descendant of swedes. If momo has swedish citizenship his passport will say “Swede”, regardless of Yankee feelings about genealogy.

      If momo flies home to Somalia, and they ask where he lives, he says Stockholm, is he not then a Stockholmer? And if he resides in Sweden isn’t he swedish.