I suppose you could start off with something like, "I'm having a hard time placing your accent..." But regardless of your words, as long as the question is asked with a smile and a cheery voice (i.e. clearly just making small talk) I can's see why anyone would consider these impolite questions.

If by "foreign" you mean non-American, I would say something like this, "Hi, welcome to the US! Did you have a good trip?" That might be all you need to open conversation & they would voluntarily say where they'd traveled from.

I'm a nosey genealogist so I'm unafraid to ask questions about country of origin & surnames. I do preface my questions though by explaining my interest & research into my own genealogy. Then, I'd just be honest & ask my question. Then, I'd take my cues from their response. If they seemed at the slightest uncomfortable I'd apologize & change the subject.

/t

I think most people are eager to tell you where they are from and something about their country. At least that has always been the reaction here on these holiday islands. You may find that they are pleased that you took an interest in them and are proud to tell you about their home country. I don't think you have to be shy about asking.

"Where is your home country?" or "Where have you come from?"
(may not be grammatically correct but they will understand). And once they begin to tell you about their home you can express your interest in their climate, the customs, the food or whatever. The more you show an interest the more they will probably tell you and be happy that you asked.
I don't think you need any special polite wording for that, as long as you say it with a smile.

SharonCb

Yes, Sharon, people do seem pleased that I have asked! I just want to phrase my questions so that I sound friendly and interested not nosey. I didn't know if there was a PC phrase to use. Guess I'll just stick with my smile and "Southern charm." I do know how to turn that on to get what I want. *grin*

You could always say something like, "you have such a beautiful accent. Where are you from?"

First, I have no doubts that you charm them and make them feel welcomed without any help from me.

My office frequently had employees/visitors from our foreign offices. They seem to become engaged when I would ask about their trip to the US e.g. favorite place visited, family in US, did they need anything, etc.

I did wear out my welcome--one morning on the elevator a group from Mumbai whom I had been making a point to greet every morning for week, shouted "we are fine, we are fine!".

I too work with international folks. I don't preface it with anything. I simply say, "What is your nationality?" It seems to cover all the bases, even when someone is Kurdish (parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, can all claim part of Kurdistan), as being proud of your nation seems to be universal. No one has been offended yet, so it must be ok to ask it that way.

I come from a place where people are from everywhere, some U.S. born have non-local accents, and people who are fiercely American have been citizens for half their lives. Asking about a foreigner's accent is also touchy because someone might interpret it as a fault of the way they speak. English is a difficult language to learn, and difficult to pronounce. People work very hard to learn it well. I've never known people to be offended by a polite and friendly inquiry about their homes and backgrounds. Just be sure that they're foreign!

A Korean-American acquaintance would riff on conversations he'd have with people, especailly when he'd be on business in parts of the country where there are few Asians, who couldn't quite get it that he was American born and bred, even though he has no accent, American facial expressions and posture, etc. He had a good sense of humor about it in an aren't people funny way, but he was seriously offended. So is the Salvadoran woman who has a noticeable accent, prefers to speak Spanish, and whose English is merely passable. She's a proud U.S. citizen who left El Salvador during their civil war, and never intends to go back. If you speak to her in her native language she'll be tickled, but don't ask her where she's from! She'll get huffy and say she's from Glendale.

I agree with what's been said by the others, any way you ask that's polite and "welcome here, I'm so interested about you and where you're from, let's be friends" will be fine. Just so long as you're sure they're actually foreigners.

I'm in SoCal and surrounded by people from everywhere. If someone has an accent I like to ask where they are from as a conversation-starter, to break the ice - and all the folks I've asked have been tickled pink to talk about their origins - as long as you are truly interested, people love it.

For example, a couple of my neighbors are from Armenia and I've learned a lot about how Armenians immigrated to California via Lebanon, Syria, France, etc. Their stories are very interesting to me. Then when I meet another Armenian, say a local banker, I can talk to them about what I know. They are so happy that you take a genuine interest and actually know something about their heritage, food, customs, etc.

We are a multi-ethnic, multi-racial country and shouldn't be afraid to talk about ourselves and learn about others, whether foreign or native born, each of us has a different interesting background.

plllog, one of my employees with a Japanese last name is a 4th generation American who speaks no Japanese. One of our customers told her on the phone that her English is great. We had a giggle over it and she didn't take offense. People can be ignorant and that's okay, as long as they did not mean any harm and are truly ignorant.

As someone who doesn't look totally "whitebread" myself, I think you can't be too thin-skinned about ignorant questions or comments.

Theresa, if these visitors are coming from overseas, I don't see a problem with asking, as long as you smile!

Always found complimenting their accent worked well.

I would say something like..." what a wonderful accent yuo have where are you from?"

Loved when they said Louisiana ! LOL

Gina, we're neighbors. I'm with you about taking things lightly when they're not meant to be offensive, but people get tired of it and get cranky. My point was that I knew more people who are American, either native or naturalized, who take offense to being asked where they're from than foreigners whom I've met, who were similarly offended.

There were some British-voiced ladies in the British store who were looking for a particular kind of biscuit and saying something about their trip. I pointed out the treats they were looking for and asked them about their stay, assuming they'd been away from home long enough to miss English food. No, they'd just arrived...from Colorado! We had a laugh, but my assumption was way off!

As was my seatmate on an airplane returning from Mexico where I'd taken courses while I was in college. We'd established that we were both from L.A. (area), when he asked me where I was born. I didn't know how to answer. After blinking a few times I told him the name of the hospital. It seemed to follow from the conversation, but then I realized that he thought I was Mexican. Whereas when I was in Austria visiting a friend who actually is (and looks) Mexican, everyone who heard us speaking English assumed I was the native and she was the visitor. Being that I can count the number of German words I know, that left me blinking when they started speaking to me. (By looks I really do fit in in Austria far more than Mexico.) When my friend saw me off at the airport security had a cow because they thought she was an Arab. The iniquities of profiling aside, it made for an uncomfortable interview while I convinced them that she'd given me nothing more dangerous than a skirt, and was from a totally different continent.

My point is regarding "how do you ask...", don't assume. Start with a lead-in question like, "How was your trip here?" to which the natural follow-up is, "Where's home?" if you're not sure someone is actually a foreigner.

Plllog, I'm glad you spoke up because I didn't want to be the lone dissenter, but I don't think it's always a good first question to ask a stranger. Sometimes I have sensed impatience, like "Oh, no, here we go again." On the receiving end, it might be heard as "I notice you're different." when the person is trying very hard to fit in. I am "friendly and Southern" also, but sometimes Americans can be too friendly, too personal, too soon, at least, compared to other cultures.

How about "how was your trip"?
Doesn't matter if they came from half way around the world or a few blocks away.
They still made "a trip" to be there.

Seems relatively safe. The answer may lead to more information from which you can build a conversation of interest to both parties.

Deanna