Canada / Quebec: we speak the same language, been there, they’re nice people, beautiful place, nice food, pleasing accent even if it sometimes sounds a bit funny. They’re like our favorite cousins outside Europe.
Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Ireland itself shares some culture with UK, so given that these countries are also anglophones and also share culture with the UK through the commonwealth there is a fair bit of commonality. In addition, a lot of Irish people have gone to these countries either as immigrants or simply just to travel, so you’d often hear stories about them. Most Irish people would have a family member that has lived in Ca, NZ or Au.
I would say Central Asian countries (like Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan), but then again, we don’t have that much in common with them anymore. We migrated from somewhere close to those countries, and it is interesting how Turanism can be found ib both cultures. Our history in like, the 900s before Saint Stephen was very reminiscent of traditional Turkic culture found there, and it is fun to compare some old traditions and symbols that also exist in those places. But we took a completely different path later on.
But I also feel like Latin Americans can be pretty close to Eastern Europeans sometimes. Many similar stereotypes exist in both places surprisingly, and we are sort of the “yeah, but are you REALLY Western” Westerners.
As someone from eastern Germany I feel a lot of connection to Vietnam, probably because I’ve grown up around a large diaspora group. Otherwise, I’d say Canada and many LatAm countries!
Brazil, although I am not Portuguese. I have many friends from Brazil and there is also a lot of German diaspora in the south of the country and I find it funny that there is a huge city named Blumenau, the same name as the village my parents lived in when I was a baby 😆
I like Persians. Great civilisation, ancient history, ancient culture. If history had went another way in the 70s they could easily be a first world democratic country like Italy or maybe Poland. And of course the Lebanese.
My cousin claims she is Native American – even though she’s never been to America, she doesn’t know anybody there, and she has no family background there. She just says she is one, “in spirit”.
Canada and New Zealand. They seem like reasonable people. Especially the New Zealanders. I’ve heard some states of Canada are quite a bit different from the rest of the country and more akin to the US.
Canadians, especially the Bluenosers of Nova Scotia. I feel that may be a comically obvious answer since the province itself is named after us, but in terms of its culture and language it has always felt to me like an extension of our nation but extremely far away.
I guess some countries in the Americas, like some Latin American countries, for instance some people from countries like Chile, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, DR, that I’ve spoken too online told me that there is a similar cultural vibe, and they have nice cultures and I think some of them score good in stats about freedom, civic rights, growth etc North America, due to pop culture, tech, civic rights (I guess this could maybe include other Western countries, like Australia and New Zealand and because they helped us in WWII). I guess in some instances countries that geopolitical relations would make sense, like India and Armenia since they are both the aggressive policy of Erdogan and due to history and I guess countries with ancient civilization, (like Ancient Egypt, Phoenicians) and others mentioned elsewhere, especially those that we used to have good relationships. Also, I like those Eastern countries that are balancing modernity, civic rights with tradition and have a culture of being polite and respectful.
Btw, the above opinions are based on perception and feeling and might not be 100% accurate.
Australia. The people seem open and friendly and they have a similar sense of humour. Don’t know about now, but it was a trend for Dutch young people to go work and travel in Australia for a year.
Lebanon. Lebanese people just seem to have such a great take on life and their humour is refined and intelligent in a way that works very well with Danish humour. Oh, and the food!!!!
Many Lithuanians have soft spot for small countries / small nations, who fight for their indenpendency from big, imperial countries to become democratic. So currently it’s Taiwan and Hong Kong.
I’d say Japan, for a reason different from the one given for Finland/Japan. For France, it would be more tied to an enjoyment of arts and craftsmanship, as well as a contemplative inclination to observe fleeting moments. There’s also the whole social rules/conformism (yes, it may be surprising considering France’s reputation for explosive opinions and flamboyance, but the country is pretty damn conformist still) and the formalism both in social rules and in the language itself. Even though France and Japan are different in character, they understand each other at a cultural level because of many similarities.
Otherwise, I am not sure, precisely because France’s explosive nature makes it hard to approach/convince in general? We also do have a historically good relationship with Lebanon though Lebanon seems quite popular lol, and Québec is commonly described as a family member (the cool cousin). I’d say Italy as well, but it’s not reciprocated and hm the Napoleonian campaign of Italy didn’t exactly help lol
Japan. It’s a bit hard to explain, but a lot of things there feel alien and familiar at the same time. I also feel like there are some common elements in the cultures.
South Korea, lots of historical parallels and we cooperate with them militarily a lot nowadays. They also enjoy fermented cabbage and have bottom-level birthrates just like us 🫠
I also have a soft spot for the Vietnamese, many of them migrated to Poland after the American-Vietnamese war and they integrated well. Also the most popular instant ramen producer in Poland (a bit of a meme here) is Vietnamese and they use that fact back home in their ads which I thought was cute.
Probably Suriname since our history together and they still speak Dutch. And by extent all former colonies like the Dutch caribean and Indonesia. However this is all based on history.
As a country we have close relationship with Uzbekistan economically.
As a person I feel kinship with India, because Sanskrit and Latvian has many similarities. I could pretty easy guess meaning of words in Sanskrit. When visiting temples, I see some elements of folklore which are also similar.
Historically the Dutch had (and somewhat still have) this with Afrikaners in South Africa. Tho with Apartheid and other historical developments this has become highly politified and the “special relationship” mostly involves Prysbetarian (Gerefofrmeerde) fundamentalists as well as populists in both the Netherlands and Flanders.
Let’s just say the ones who want to give Dutch passports to Afrikaners are the same ppl who want the state of Flanders to be transferred from Belgium to the Netherlands.
A more broad (and clearly less controversial) one is that with Canada and Australia, where abt 5% of our pop emigrated to right after WW2. Plus the Canadians are the face of the Allied liberators (British/American) of many of the British troops that operated here were Canadian divisions.
Brazil for obvious reasons. Same with Cape Verde also because I have friends from the islands.
But pretty much every portuguese speaking country/region. Special reference to East Timor because we followed closely their fight for independence a few years ago.
Maybe not too popular here but for me it’s the US.
It was probably ignited through TV in my childhood and youth. I was always interested in visiting the US and seeing the places I knew from TV. At age 16/17 I was an exchange student in a US High School and I am still very interested in US history and everything that happens there.
I am very worried about what’s currently going on. I think we need the US as a democratic partner in the global struggle of freedom vs. dictatorship. It think there are definitely more things that unite us than divide us.
As an Irish person I’d say New Zealand. They’re also a small island country with similar weather and a lot of cultural overlaps. I feel like Irish and Kiwis get along better than other nationalities.
But we tend to have sympathy for any country that has struggled with colonialism. So for me I used to live in Taiwan, and I’d like to think most Irish would be sympathetic to their struggle for independence against China. Then other countries that were exploited by the British like India.
whenever I’m with Canadians it feels like I’m talking to an English-speaking Swede. When I am in Toronto it ”feels like home”, the ambulances just have a weird colour and the AC is unexpectedly loud
I’m constantly surprised with how easy I can relate to Japanese culture and society. I think there are many similarities to how we as people act and behave in public settings.
I (from Portugal) work with lots of people from Nepal and love them more everyday. Really chill, hardworking and fun to be around. They also like drinking their beers from the 1L bottles like me and my friends
As an island nation there is an unspoken kinship between us, though we are more like the irresponsible drunk younger sibling to their older and more put together older sibling.
Serbia: I always thought we were similar culturally to many middle eastern peoples, as they have mixed Christian/muslim populations and similar experiences under the Ottoman empire
Lebanon, Syria, etc.
Also I personally just love Persian culture so I have been learning Farsi for many many years. Serbs and Iranians both dislike USA 😂
Most Island nations, mostly Japan because they are extremely mountainous with limited agriculture, isolated historically, similar culture, share some traditions, we have a sister city with them. Won’t say where I am from, though. Been to Japan and I can say I felt at home throughout because the cultural differences were not noticeable when you share many of the same unspoken attitudes and practices.
Both Poland and Uzbekistan have faced oppression from neighbours and some of the foods are similar. Also, I love the Uzbek football team.
🇨🇦Canada
Lots of Poles live here, they also have some similar nature and people stand up for their rights
🇵🇸Palestine
The way Palestinians are treated by Israelis and Israel’s attempts to wipe out the Palestinian identity remind me of Nazi Germany in the past and Soviet Union, present day Russia. I have always found the strength and courage of Palestinians to be admirable.
I’m Irish, but I’m not gonna give the obvious US/Canada/New Zealand/Australia answer, because a lot of us emigrated there so it’s not so much a kinship as much as it is Irish people in another place.
The people I am going to mention are the Choctaw Nation, a tribe of Native Americans situated in Oklahoma. All the way back in 1847, they sent money to Ireland to assist us during the Famine ($170 at the time, but in today’s money it’s worth over €13,000). We appreciated this greatly, and thanked them many times over almost 200 years. We gave back in 2020 by donating money to tribes suffering due to COVID-19, and in 2015 we erected a statue in their honour. In 2023, they made a statue in our honour. If you haven’t seen them, go look up either the Kindred Spirit statue in Midleton, Cork or the Eternal Heart statue in Durant, Oklahoma, they are truly beautiful.
The Irish and the Choctaw tribe have a shared history of oppression, colonisation, and loss of our language. We both have dealt with the hardship of preserving our culture on the verge of extinction, and despite having many people in our culture, few are native speakers of the Choctaw language or the Irish language left. We certainly have a kinship, a strong bond between our nations, and I appreciate it.
Québec / Francophone Canadians and Armenia/Armenians are two groups that have some interesting historical parallels with Greece, so I’ve always felt that I politically understand them at a deeper level.
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Canada / Quebec: we speak the same language, been there, they’re nice people, beautiful place, nice food, pleasing accent even if it sometimes sounds a bit funny. They’re like our favorite cousins outside Europe.
Latinamerica, but they are mostly half European and the culture in its core isn’t as different.
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Former Portuguese colonies such as Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Papua New Guinea, etc.
Countries with what I think are generally similar values such as Canada, Australia, pretty much every South American country, etc.
Countries that I heard about a good bit in history class such as the ones not mentioned are mostly Japan, China and South Africa.
I’d love to include more African nations here but I honestly don’t know enough about them to feel kinship with
Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Ireland itself shares some culture with UK, so given that these countries are also anglophones and also share culture with the UK through the commonwealth there is a fair bit of commonality. In addition, a lot of Irish people have gone to these countries either as immigrants or simply just to travel, so you’d often hear stories about them. Most Irish people would have a family member that has lived in Ca, NZ or Au.
Thai and Philpeans people.
They get western humour and are genuinely positive, very safe and trustworthy imo.
I would say Central Asian countries (like Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan), but then again, we don’t have that much in common with them anymore. We migrated from somewhere close to those countries, and it is interesting how Turanism can be found ib both cultures. Our history in like, the 900s before Saint Stephen was very reminiscent of traditional Turkic culture found there, and it is fun to compare some old traditions and symbols that also exist in those places. But we took a completely different path later on.
But I also feel like Latin Americans can be pretty close to Eastern Europeans sometimes. Many similar stereotypes exist in both places surprisingly, and we are sort of the “yeah, but are you REALLY Western” Westerners.
Brazil in particular but also all the others in South America.
New Zealand. Love the language, The people and the nature
As someone from eastern Germany I feel a lot of connection to Vietnam, probably because I’ve grown up around a large diaspora group. Otherwise, I’d say Canada and many LatAm countries!
None fully. Closest is probably Canada, similar climate/flora/fauna, hockey, similar-ish values.
Honourable mentions are New Zealand for much of the same reasoning and maybe Japan but I can’t quite explain why.
Brazil, although I am not Portuguese. I have many friends from Brazil and there is also a lot of German diaspora in the south of the country and I find it funny that there is a huge city named Blumenau, the same name as the village my parents lived in when I was a baby 😆
I like Persians. Great civilisation, ancient history, ancient culture. If history had went another way in the 70s they could easily be a first world democratic country like Italy or maybe Poland. And of course the Lebanese.
Norway: Canada and New Zealand.
Canada because a lot of similar values i.e: Healthcare. And lifestyle (outdoors)
New Zealand: A lot of similar nature.
My cousin claims she is Native American – even though she’s never been to America, she doesn’t know anybody there, and she has no family background there. She just says she is one, “in spirit”.
Crazy as a box of frogs.
Canada and New Zealand. They seem like reasonable people. Especially the New Zealanders. I’ve heard some states of Canada are quite a bit different from the rest of the country and more akin to the US.
I’m not sure if it fully counts but i love Georgia, very underrated country and culture
Canadians, especially the Bluenosers of Nova Scotia. I feel that may be a comically obvious answer since the province itself is named after us, but in terms of its culture and language it has always felt to me like an extension of our nation but extremely far away.
I guess some countries in the Americas, like some Latin American countries, for instance some people from countries like Chile, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, DR, that I’ve spoken too online told me that there is a similar cultural vibe, and they have nice cultures and I think some of them score good in stats about freedom, civic rights, growth etc North America, due to pop culture, tech, civic rights (I guess this could maybe include other Western countries, like Australia and New Zealand and because they helped us in WWII). I guess in some instances countries that geopolitical relations would make sense, like India and Armenia since they are both the aggressive policy of Erdogan and due to history and I guess countries with ancient civilization, (like Ancient Egypt, Phoenicians) and others mentioned elsewhere, especially those that we used to have good relationships. Also, I like those Eastern countries that are balancing modernity, civic rights with tradition and have a culture of being polite and respectful.
Btw, the above opinions are based on perception and feeling and might not be 100% accurate.
Australia. The people seem open and friendly and they have a similar sense of humour. Don’t know about now, but it was a trend for Dutch young people to go work and travel in Australia for a year.
Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Uruguay, Argentina.
Lebanon. Lebanese people just seem to have such a great take on life and their humour is refined and intelligent in a way that works very well with Danish humour. Oh, and the food!!!!
For us Irish, it’s Australia and I’ve been told by people from there, South Koreans think the Irish are the European version of them.
Israel, because part of my family is Jewish and I took mostly after them.
Finnougric and Turkic folks of the Volga-Ural region (Bashkirs, Mansi) and Central Asians (especially if the former doesn’t qualify as non-european).
Even though it’s partly European, the answer is absolutely Turkey.
Don’t know why but I have a thing for Latin America.
Many Lithuanians have soft spot for small countries / small nations, who fight for their indenpendency from big, imperial countries to become democratic. So currently it’s Taiwan and Hong Kong.
All of LATAM. In fact, I feel we’re far closer culturally than Northern Europe.
I’d say Japan, for a reason different from the one given for Finland/Japan. For France, it would be more tied to an enjoyment of arts and craftsmanship, as well as a contemplative inclination to observe fleeting moments. There’s also the whole social rules/conformism (yes, it may be surprising considering France’s reputation for explosive opinions and flamboyance, but the country is pretty damn conformist still) and the formalism both in social rules and in the language itself. Even though France and Japan are different in character, they understand each other at a cultural level because of many similarities.
Otherwise, I am not sure, precisely because France’s explosive nature makes it hard to approach/convince in general? We also do have a historically good relationship with Lebanon though
Lebanon seems quite popular lol, and Québec is commonly described as a family member (the cool cousin). I’d say Italy as well, but it’s not reciprocated and hm the Napoleonian campaign of Italy didn’t exactly help lolJapan. It’s a bit hard to explain, but a lot of things there feel alien and familiar at the same time. I also feel like there are some common elements in the cultures.
Georgia (somehow) and Indonesia. But I’m Dutch, so we have quite some family ties with Indonesia still.
I’m German and have always been drawn to China. Ended up studying Sinology, learning the language, living there and marrying a Chinese wife.
South Korea, lots of historical parallels and we cooperate with them militarily a lot nowadays. They also enjoy fermented cabbage and have bottom-level birthrates just like us 🫠
I also have a soft spot for the Vietnamese, many of them migrated to Poland after the American-Vietnamese war and they integrated well. Also the most popular instant ramen producer in Poland (a bit of a meme here) is Vietnamese and they use that fact back home in their ads which I thought was cute.
Probably Suriname since our history together and they still speak Dutch. And by extent all former colonies like the Dutch caribean and Indonesia. However this is all based on history.
As a country we have close relationship with Uzbekistan economically.
As a person I feel kinship with India, because Sanskrit and Latvian has many similarities. I could pretty easy guess meaning of words in Sanskrit. When visiting temples, I see some elements of folklore which are also similar.
Canada, and if I moved anywhere in the world for a total fresh new start, I’d go there.
Chile. Been in punta arenas a year for a student exchange. Awesome people, austral and choripanes:)
I feel like it’s almost cheating to say Australians and New Zealanders for us, they’re about as “foreign” as Irish, English or Welsh people.
USA. I’ve always felt a bond with the american mentality and way of life and when I’ve lived there the bond was confirmed. I love America.
Argentina. lots of flows of people from one side to the other and back. Also Mexico.
Historically the Dutch had (and somewhat still have) this with Afrikaners in South Africa. Tho with Apartheid and other historical developments this has become highly politified and the “special relationship” mostly involves Prysbetarian (Gerefofrmeerde) fundamentalists as well as populists in both the Netherlands and Flanders.
Let’s just say the ones who want to give Dutch passports to Afrikaners are the same ppl who want the state of Flanders to be transferred from Belgium to the Netherlands.
A more broad (and clearly less controversial) one is that with Canada and Australia, where abt 5% of our pop emigrated to right after WW2. Plus the Canadians are the face of the Allied liberators (British/American) of many of the British troops that operated here were Canadian divisions.
Turkey, probably (although it’s partly a European country). Especially the more secular Turks.
I live in the part of Croatia they ruled for a long time, my dialect has many loanwords from Turkish, there are many similarities in the cuisine, etc.
Other than that, maybe some Latin American countries.
Uruguay in particular but also most Spanish speaking American countries and Brazil.
Brazil for obvious reasons. Same with Cape Verde also because I have friends from the islands.
But pretty much every portuguese speaking country/region. Special reference to East Timor because we followed closely their fight for independence a few years ago.
Maybe not too popular here but for me it’s the US.
It was probably ignited through TV in my childhood and youth. I was always interested in visiting the US and seeing the places I knew from TV. At age 16/17 I was an exchange student in a US High School and I am still very interested in US history and everything that happens there.
I am very worried about what’s currently going on. I think we need the US as a democratic partner in the global struggle of freedom vs. dictatorship. It think there are definitely more things that unite us than divide us.
Many Icelanders emigrated to Canada in the 19th century so I’d say Canada.
New Zealand also because of similar nature
Maybe Fiji, I don’t know where it is on a map, they don’t know where we are on a map, I’m sure we’ll be fast friends.
I come from Poland. I always found Slovaksike second Poles. Language is similar, cuisine as well. We share Tatra mountains. We have great beer.
Central Asians specifically the Kazakhs. They’re just chill guys same with Aussies, Kiwis and Canadians.
As an Irish person I’d say New Zealand. They’re also a small island country with similar weather and a lot of cultural overlaps. I feel like Irish and Kiwis get along better than other nationalities.
But we tend to have sympathy for any country that has struggled with colonialism. So for me I used to live in Taiwan, and I’d like to think most Irish would be sympathetic to their struggle for independence against China. Then other countries that were exploited by the British like India.
As a Swede:
whenever I’m with Canadians it feels like I’m talking to an English-speaking Swede. When I am in Toronto it ”feels like home”, the ambulances just have a weird colour and the AC is unexpectedly loud
I’m constantly surprised with how easy I can relate to Japanese culture and society. I think there are many similarities to how we as people act and behave in public settings.
Australia and New Zealand. I feel like they are such chill people and just don’t give af about anything. I love that.
Brazilians have definitely always felt a connection with them.
I (from Portugal) work with lots of people from Nepal and love them more everyday. Really chill, hardworking and fun to be around. They also like drinking their beers from the 1L bottles like me and my friends
Soz see non Euro.
I have to say Hong Kong but I’ve lived here for 40 yrs. it’s home
Japan.
As an island nation there is an unspoken kinship between us, though we are more like the irresponsible drunk younger sibling to their older and more put together older sibling.
Japan. Beautiful, clean country, polite, civilised people, rich culture and history. I also speak the language.
Armenia and Georgia. We (Bulgaria) have an Armenian minority population and everyone I know is really nice.
Like ½ of US,, born and raised there but the Republicans 👿 left under Reagan for a walk about and never returned 🤔
Dont really do, but i do see us n Canada to be quite similar in certain cultural aspects
Iceland, since I’ve always felt kinship with the Nordics.
Serbia: I always thought we were similar culturally to many middle eastern peoples, as they have mixed Christian/muslim populations and similar experiences under the Ottoman empire
Lebanon, Syria, etc.
Also I personally just love Persian culture so I have been learning Farsi for many many years. Serbs and Iranians both dislike USA 😂
Most Island nations, mostly Japan because they are extremely mountainous with limited agriculture, isolated historically, similar culture, share some traditions, we have a sister city with them. Won’t say where I am from, though. Been to Japan and I can say I felt at home throughout because the cultural differences were not noticeable when you share many of the same unspoken attitudes and practices.
I’m from Italy and for certain things I feel closer to a Lebanon or Morocco than Norway. Climate, family values, cuisine…
I feel like all the Mediterranean countries share a similar vibe
All of them. Neighbors 20 meters away? Hate them as much as the ones 12000km away. I hate all of my brothers and sisters the same.
🇺🇿Uzbekistan
Both Poland and Uzbekistan have faced oppression from neighbours and some of the foods are similar. Also, I love the Uzbek football team.
🇨🇦Canada
Lots of Poles live here, they also have some similar nature and people stand up for their rights
🇵🇸Palestine
The way Palestinians are treated by Israelis and Israel’s attempts to wipe out the Palestinian identity remind me of Nazi Germany in the past and Soviet Union, present day Russia. I have always found the strength and courage of Palestinians to be admirable.
Canada, hands down. I lived there for several years and it will always hold a special place in my heart.
Japan. Here in Europe I get along extremely well with people from Iran for some reason.
I’m Irish, but I’m not gonna give the obvious US/Canada/New Zealand/Australia answer, because a lot of us emigrated there so it’s not so much a kinship as much as it is Irish people in another place.
The people I am going to mention are the Choctaw Nation, a tribe of Native Americans situated in Oklahoma. All the way back in 1847, they sent money to Ireland to assist us during the Famine ($170 at the time, but in today’s money it’s worth over €13,000). We appreciated this greatly, and thanked them many times over almost 200 years. We gave back in 2020 by donating money to tribes suffering due to COVID-19, and in 2015 we erected a statue in their honour. In 2023, they made a statue in our honour. If you haven’t seen them, go look up either the Kindred Spirit statue in Midleton, Cork or the Eternal Heart statue in Durant, Oklahoma, they are truly beautiful.
The Irish and the Choctaw tribe have a shared history of oppression, colonisation, and loss of our language. We both have dealt with the hardship of preserving our culture on the verge of extinction, and despite having many people in our culture, few are native speakers of the Choctaw language or the Irish language left. We certainly have a kinship, a strong bond between our nations, and I appreciate it.
Québec / Francophone Canadians and Armenia/Armenians are two groups that have some interesting historical parallels with Greece, so I’ve always felt that I politically understand them at a deeper level.