Why does everyone say they live in ATL? (Atlanta, Marietta: house, college)

[michaelcarter2008]

Ok my girl and I visited her sis in COBB County. To me that place was far as heck for ATL if I can't walk to dwn town without calasoing then you dont live in that city. theres no public transportation around there and we have gotten lost on numerous occasions trying to get back to BFE. Thats just like ppl who live in PG county maryland but say they live in DC or ppl who live in Marin county but say they live in San Francisco. Very misleading to me. have you ever came in contact with ppl like that. Once you stared digging for facts you realize they dont reside anywhere near the major city?

[City Fanatic]

It's the Atlanta Metropolitan area, so it's often considered "Atlanta".

[neil0311]

The population of the city is quite small compared to the surrounding, mostly unincorporated suburbs that constitute the metro area, and the the larger metro area has been what people have identified with for many years.

It was this way when I first came to Atlanta in the early 80s. Many people worked in Atlanta and lived outside the city limits. In fact, other than Buckhead, Atlanta was mostly a ghost town after dark. The population center was in the suburbs but the area had an affinity with Atlanta, and people have referred to 'living in Atlanta" even if they lived in Stone Mountain, or Norcross, or Marietta, or Forest Park, or Hapeville.

To some degree, that's changing a little now, as more people move from other parts of the country where people do identify more with the local municipality, even if that's a suburb of a larger city. Many of the once unincorporated suburbs are also incorporating (Dunwoody, North Fulton, South Fulton) and those cities are developing more of an identity apart from Atlanta.

[michaelcarter2008]

OK thats was what I was wondering. To a person thats not from there it can be misleading.I dont know how far is COBB county from ATL but tio me its BFE and very hard to get to. I am worried that I will have trouble commuting if my gf and I stay in COBB with her sis. I dont like long rides or alot of traffic so I might try to take the train some days just so I can aliviate some stress.

[atlantaATL]

I live in College Park but I still tell people from out of town that i live in Atlanta because someone in california may not know where college park is I still fill like i am in the city limits when i am in college park because its quick to get into the city limits which is like 3 minutes from my house downtown is 15 mins. Its that way in every large city. People from bronx or queens is going to say im from NY and then someone would say what part then you say bronx or queens.

[Go Blue 99]

Originally Posted by michaelcarter2008

Ok my girl and I visited her sis in COBB County. To me that place was far as heck for ATL if I can't walk to dwn town without calasoing then you dont live in that city. theres no public transportation around there and we have gotten lost on numerous occasions trying to get back to BFE. Thats just like ppl who live in PG county maryland but say they live in DC or ppl who live in Marin county but say they live in San Francisco. Very misleading to me. have you ever came in contact with ppl like that. Once you stared digging for facts you realize they dont reside anywhere near the major city?

I agree it is odd to say this to someone local. If the person is local, odds are they know what Cobb County is.

But when you're talking to someone out of the region, it perfectly makes sense to just name your metro area. I wouldn't call it "very misleading". For example, not everyone knows where Marin County is..if you say you're from there, you're likely going to have to also say it's near San Fran.

[Sweet Atlanta Peach]

Originally Posted by atlantaATL

I live in College Park but I still tell people from out of town that i live in Atlanta because someone in california may not know where college park is I still fill like i am in the city limits when i am in college park because its quick to get into the city limits which is like 3 minutes from my house downtown is 15 mins. Its that way in every large city. People from bronx or queens is going to say im from NY and then someone would say what part then you say bronx or queens.

But, the weird thing is, certain areas of College Park, Hapeville, And East Point show up as "Atlanta" on some GPS navigation systems (like the 30349 areas of College Park).

[Divine Shadow]

The same reason why people say Disney World is located in Orlando Florida. It is actually located in Lake Buena Vista and not Orlando. But who the heck knows where that city is?

It also depends on who is asking where you live. If an exact location is needed, then communication needs to be more specific.

-a|ex

[atlantaATL]

Originally Posted by Sweet Atlanta Peach

But, the weird thing is, certain areas of College Park, Hapeville, And East Point show up as "Atlanta" on some GPS navigation systems (like the 30349 areas of College Park).

Right because i guess there so close to the city limits

[aries4118]

Um...this is common across the United States and the world. Someone from Arlington Heights, IL says they are from Chicago. If one wants more specifics, they ask "Oh, which part?" And then the person would say Arlington Heights.

Not a novel concept. Not rocket science. Not unique to Atlanta.