I think it feels more Canon playing as a Nord Warrior cause that was who was in the trailer.

Not to mention, the character menu starts off as a Nord. That doesn't mean much, but still... he's Nord.

Skyrim is home to the Nords, and with all the Nordic history - it just feels right for it to be a Nord.

Also I think the canon winners of the Civil War are the Stormcloaks. The Empire is dying out and the Dominion is coming to replace it, so it only makes sense for the Empire to die out in Skyrim. Plus since I believe the canon character is a Nord, it makes sense for a Nord to fight for Nord rule in Skyrim.

Well, Mankar Camoran could wear the amulet of kings in Oblivion, and its requirement was that the wearer was a Dragonborn (they never said you had to be specifically a Septim), so their is a non-nord from the previous game. Aside from that, the only requirement to be a Dragonborn is a special blessing from Akatosh.
So I feel fine about it myself.

If there ever was a canon, it would be the nord guy in the backround.
But we all know how beth handles canon (Warp in the west my ass).

This.

Mankar Camoran, the Altmer son of two Bosmer... yeah, he's really of Nord descent.

that is basically saying that non-elven/breton mages are out of place because most mages are elves.

The Thu'um is not a racial thing, it is a cultural thing, something the Nords found and Nords use, but if any other race, be it a Khajiit or even an Orc studies with the Greybeards they can learn the Voice too.

Even in the game there's absolutely no indication how Dragonborn are always big buff Nord heroes, the only thing they say that they're Dragonslayers, so if you don't go out and kill dragons that would be out of place, or just rejecting fate and such.
And you don't go to Sovengard by normal means either, I mean you don't die, you follow Alduin there.

I have a http://i1069.photobucket.com/albums/u476/arconacor/TESV2012-04-0319-19-25-41.jpg, and he's awesome.
I really agree about the "secondary hero" part. I liked the Skyrim MQ, but being the center of the world becomes... uncomfortable after a while.
The CoC, as you said is a great example of what I'd like. He/she's there, renowned and respected, but still everyone knows that the hero is Martin. There are a lot of situations in which I'd rather help the main hero than be one.

I feel the same way I felt having a non Imperial CoC and a non Dunmer Nerevarine, just fine lol. Just because a land sees their own native people as the special hero doesn't mean the race is actually going to be their own.

I just realised how silly this all is. People complain about non-Nord Dovahkiin, they complain about dragons... simple solution, don't play the main quest.

The argument about non-Nords being out of place as the Dovahkiin is stupid, not only because you are not forced to pay the role of the Dovahkkiin but also because of something else that is out of place... the Nord mage.

'nuff said, really.

well people here seem to confuse people who train to use the voice with dragonborns.

the greybeards - nords but not dragonborn
jarl ulfric - nord but not dragonborn

septims - imperial's and dragonborn

however the ONLY place you seem to be able to learn about the voice is in high hrothgar (sp?) wich is located in skyrim. . .
thats like having the only place you can learn to sing in germany, then wondering why most germans can sing. . .

so please, dont confuse thu'um use, with dragonborn.

that said i do feel strange playing a Khajiit and being the dragonborn, so i dont progress past the first encounter at the whiterun watchtower, no dragons, no shouts.

I have retired 4 characters and stop part way through around 5 others and never played as a nord. I dont remember hearing anything about previous dragonborns always been nord.

Cookies for you.

I made the same point about the Greybeards, but neglected the rest. The Septims, however, are of Nord descent so their use to disprove the "Nord only Dovahkiin" falacy is questionable.

With my latest playthrough, I play a Breton and my next objective in the MQ is to see the Greybeards for the first time. Yeah, I've enabled dragon encounters, but they are few and far between, though I seem to see most in the Rift. This solves the increasing frequency of dragon encounters without completely removing them... but then, I love to go against dragons so them becomin common is not something I'm fussed about.

Dragonborn can be of any race by lore, it it just part of northern culture as they developed the skills to effectively use the blessing of akatosh.

However it is indeed too specific for me to enjoy it as a wood-elf. I thought I might, but it ended up ruining my character. I think it does fit for a human character, and even for an Orc. I'll try it with my Orc as soon as Bethesda allows me to change my hair (my Orc looks way too clean (he started out as a legionair)).

Being Dragonborn is not that race specific either, it just happens that Dragons has the most impact on the Nord Culture. You just have a special power to eat dragon souls, there's no phrophecy like in Morrowind how you are supposed to free the land from the outlanders, even if you are an outlander yourself. This question only comes up in the civil war, and that has nothing to do with being a Dragonborn.

I agree that Dragonborn is not a racial thing and is not something that is exclusive to Nords....

But I am saying that it makes more sense for the Dragonborn to be Nord. Specifically, the one in the background of these forums.

Same thing with Morrowind. It just made more sense for the Nerevarine to be Dunmer. If a game were to take place in Black Marsh, it'd be reasonable for the canon character to be Argonian.

But I understand it's not racial.