What is "americanization"

Americanization \A*mer`i*can*i*za"tion\ ([.a]*m[~e]r`[i^]*kan*[i^]*z[=a]"sh[u^]n), n. The process of Americanizing.

1816, noun of state or action from Americanize.

n. (alternative form of Americanization English)

Americanization is the process of an immigrant to the United States of America becoming a person who shares American values, beliefs and customs and is assimilated into American society. This process typically involves learning English and adjusting to American culture, and customs, while keeping the old foods and religion. The ethnic groups undergoing Americanization not only retained their traditional cuisines, but they also spread to the wider American public for their taste of pizza, bagels and tacos.

The Americanization movement was a nationwide organized effort in the 1910s to bring millions of recent immigrants into the American cultural system. 30+ states passed laws requiring Americanization programs; in hundreds of cities the chamber of commerce organized classes in English language and American civics; many factories cooperated. Over 3000 school boards, especially in the Northeast and Midwest, operated after-school and Saturday classes. Labor unions, especially the coal miners, ( United Mine Workers of America) helped their members take out citizenship papers. In the cities, the YMCA and YWCA were especially active, as were organization of descendants of the founding generation such as the Daughters of the American Revolution. The movement climaxed during World War I, as eligible young immigrant men were drafted into the Army, and the nation made every effort to integrate the European ethnic groups into the national identity.

In American media, the term Americanization is used to describe the censoring and editing of a foreign TV show or movie that is bought by a U.S. station. This editing is done with the aim of making the work more appealing to American audiences, and to respond to perceived American sensitivities. The changes can be so drastic that little — if any — evidence of the TV show or movie's true origin remains.

For television documentaries, it is an established practice in English-speaking countries to hire someone of the audience's accent as a narrator. Sometimes the script is done verbatim, e.g., the PBS Nova documentary series continued to use the BBC's original word "maize," whereas an American audience would expect to hear "corn."

Americanization (or Americanisation) refers to the influence the United States of America has on the culture of other countries.

Americanization may also refer to:

• Americanization (immigration), the process of assimilation of foreign immigrants into the United States of America
• Americanization (foreign culture and media), the modification of foreign media to suit American tastes
• Cultural assimilation of Native Americans, the attempted assimilation of Native American cultures as a policy of the United States government c. 1850 – c. 1920
• Americanization (Vietnam War), a time period in the Vietnam War, roughly the years of President Lyndon B. Johnson

In countries outside of the United States, Americanization or Americanisation is the influence American culture has on the culture of other countries, such as their popular culture, media, cuisine, technology, business practices, or political techniques. The term has been used since at least 1907. While not necessarily a hostile term, it is most often used by critics in the target country worried about the tendency. Americanization has become more prevalent since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989-91, and especially since the advent of widespread high speed Internet use starting in the mid-2000s. In Europe, in recent years there is growing concern about Americanization through Google, Facebook, Twitter, Apple Inc. and Uber, among many other Internet-oriented corporations based in the U.S. European governments have increasingly expressed concern regarding privacy issues, as well as antitrust and taxation issues regarding the new American giants. The Wall Street Journal in 2015 reported "deep concerns in Europe’s highest policy circles about the power of U.S. technology companies."

Within the United States, the term Americanization refers to the process of acculturation by immigrants or annexed populations (e.g. the Californios) to American customs and values.