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Growing up in Northern NJ (family all originally from the 5 boroughs of NYC) and having settled all over the Eastern Seaboard I'll give some thoughts on this.
Several posters on this page of the thread are right. Baltimore has a few Southern tenets to it. There are pockets of old school Baltimore people who still have a Southern drawl and are very laid back. Kind of have that more Southern mentality.
However at the same time Baltimore natives are very similar to Philly in a lot of ways as someone pointed out above. They have those similar neighborhoods with White natives in the city that are kind of "city rednecks" I like to call them.
I don't mean that AT ALL in a derogatory way so maybe I should change it not to offend any sensitive types here. What I mean is Baltimore and Philly both have large swaths (Philly even moreso) of neighborhoods that are just local mostly whites that are very well fed and never stray far from their hoods. They are kinda city tough but also have some country redneckish type qualities to them as well. Hope this makes sense. Again Philly moreso than Bmore but they both have it. These types in both cities both have that same type of accent too. It's crazy but you really hear it when they're both rooting their local teams on and it comes out.
I've had family in both area and grew up in the 80's visiting these places and then college years in the 90's partying and frequenting both places.
DC, which is my home away from home, (went to college and much of my family settled here when leaving NYC back in the 60's) has been described by many as a cross between the North and South in terms of you get some of that syrupy sweetness from people that you'd find in the South combined with the urban hustle/bustle, grittiness, competitiveness that you'd associate with the North.
But I also agree with the person who said about Richmond kind of being the real dividing line. That's where the South really begins to me. About 90 minutes South of DC on 95. There's also pockets North of that in Virginia closer to DC that you get that feel as well as in parts of Southern Maryland as well.
I know Chicago has long been a migratory route for southern blacks and a lot of influence in that city from the Southern states due to this. I've only spent a little time in Chicago which is an amazing city and I need to get back and explore more.
I'd probably say Chicago has more of a current association with a Southern feel to it (but this is a complete guess) vs Baltimore which has more historical roots/connection to being Southern (Civil War times, etc).
I think it's really close as each has their stronger suits in this argument.
this is not my experience at all. Having grown up in baltimore/dc and now having lived in chicago for almost 10 years, i have a reference for comparison. I have not "frequently" encountered black people sounding like chief keef, twista, i don't know the rest. If you have not lived in chicago, that will be your reference (known rappers, etc.). That is not "average." chicago has a large middle class black population that does not fit the mold you've described.
Even if you take more urban blacks, not all sound like you describe. Below is imo a fair representation of an "average" black chicago accent that you would "frequently" encounter, if you are restricting to urban blacks:
and to your last point, chicago is waaay less southern influenced than baltimore or dc. That is not even debatable. Which is why this whole thread has devolved to only comparing blacks because that is the only point that is even debatable, and they have lost that argument as well.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BostonBornMassMade
A good number of people in Baltimore say y'all.
Sweet Tea is made in some local mom and pop places. I
'Id also say that most of the population is Anglo-Saxon or Black. Maybe German. Immigrants are less than 10% of the population-reminiscent of more southern cities than northeastern. Meager Dominican and Puerto Rican populations
Although known for being a high school basketball hotbed, the populace loves football ('crabcakes and football!') and college sports are noticeably more popular here in Baltimore and Maryland than in points north.
Low COL for a major city
There are also many white conservatives and Trump support here. Its far more common to meet open white conservatives and Trump supporters here than in CT or MA...I just saw a trump bumper sticker in Baltimore yesterday. I can honestly say I never saw not a one in Boston or adjacent burbs But go out of largely black SW Baltimore, only about 4 minutes into Halethorpe/Arbutus and you'll see a huge 'TRUMP' banner out on someone's lawn...This make sense Maryland because is only 50% white but went for Trump just as much if not even more than NJ CT or MA in 2016, that's because white people in the area really are that much more conservative than the far north.
Much of this has to do with what makes Baltimore different from Boston, New York City and Philly. Not exactly having to do with north/south.
I agree there are some traces, and the history is there, but lacking lots of Dominicans isn't one of them. That's just a stereotype used to describe what people like to claim Northern or Northeastern today. Portland, ME is in the NE, and void of a large PR/DR population. DC and it's suburbs have more Puerto Ricans and Dominicans than Baltimore, and is more international, and faster paced, so I guess it's more northern than Baltimore?
I also know of very few Trump supporters in Baltimore itself. In fact the only one I first hand know of is a Black guy from my hometown who ran for office here and lost, basically got ran out of town.
The most Southern vibe I get in Baltimore is a little bit of the vernacular when I hear the locals say tew, dew, yew, blew etc. aside from that as a city it's pretty middle ground IMO. Like another poster stated the city is very much a Catholic area, not Southern Baptist. Whether the accent is more or less Southern sounding than Chicago is one thing, but on it's own it's middle ground I don't get very northern or southern vibes, just plain Baltimore. The major American city that Baltimore is most reminiscent of bar none is Philadelphia, no matter what one may point out as differences, those two cities are closely related sister cities.
Last edited by the resident09; 06-30-2020 at 08:54 AM..
Much of this has to do with what makes Baltimore different from Boston, New York City and Philly. Not exactly having to do with north/south.
I agree there are some traces, and the history is there, but lacking lots of Dominicans isn't one of them. That's just a stereotype used to describe what people like to claim Northern or Northeastern today. Portland, ME is in the NE, and void of a large PR/DR population. DC and it's suburbs have more Puerto Ricans and Dominicans than Baltimore, and is more international, and faster paced, so I guess it's more northern than Baltimore?
I also know of very few Trump supporters in Baltimore itself. In fact the only one I first hand know of is a Black guy from my hometown who ran for office here and lost, basically got ran out of town.
The most Southern vibe I get in Baltimore is a little bit of the vernacular when I hear the locals say tew, dew, yew, blew etc. aside from that as a city it's pretty middle ground IMO. Like another poster stated the city is very much a Catholic area, not Southern Baptist. Whether the accent is more or less Southern sounding than Chicago is one thing, but on it's own it's middle ground I don't get very northern or southern vibes, just plain Baltimore. The major American city that Baltimore is most reminiscent of bar none is Philadelphia, no matter what one may point out as differences, those two cities are closely related sister cities.
DC certainly has many northern influences. ou just named one. All I've said about DC proper is its accent is more southern. DC is another mix like Baltimore but in different ways. PG is southern.
Trump supporters definitely exist in Baltimore. I think more so than DC.
Portland Maine is hardly an 'urban area' its urban core is miniscule compared to any of the cities were talking about. It has pretty much zero southern characteristics at all. Not comparable to a large urbanized area like Baltimore which has much more southern influence. There's quite literally more people in just the Baltimore metro than all of Maine and New Hampshire combined.
I tend to agree with you its middle ground but there are definite southern vibes i get. But tons of northern vibes. Even some midwestern and appalachain vibes. It feels more like a hodgeposh of american cultures than simply totally its own thats purely 'Baltimore'
This is not my experience at all. Having grown up in Baltimore/DC and now having lived in Chicago for almost 10 years, I have a reference for comparison. I have not "frequently" encountered black people sounding like Chief Keef, Twista, I don't know the rest. If you have not lived in Chicago, that will be your reference (known rappers, etc.). That is not "average." Chicago has a large middle class black population that does not fit the mold you've described.
Even if you take more urban blacks, not all sound like you describe. Below is IMO a fair representation of an "average" black Chicago accent that you would "frequently" encounter, if you are restricting to urban blacks:
And to your last point, Chicago is waaay less southern influenced than Baltimore or DC. That is not even debatable. Which is why this whole thread has devolved to only comparing blacks because that is the only point that is even debatable, and they have lost that argument as well.
Chicago is way more southern influenced than Baltimore. Black people in Chicago walk around with colorful fur coats and canes, finger waves and gator shoes.
i said i wasn’t going to post his videos but i found one that i could post to show the chicago accent i’ve heard mostly. He is exactly how my cousins and his friends talk.
Kanye West talks about moving to the DMV from Chicago as a teen to be with his dad and being called a "bama." He states that Chicago was behind DC from a fashion standpoint and when he returned to the Chi, they asked about his style.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DC's Finest
Kanye West talks about moving to the DMV from Chicago as a teen to be with his dad and being called a "bama." He states that Chicago was behind DC from a fashion standpoint and when he returned to the Chi, they asked about his style.
I used to hear about this all the time. I believe his dad originates from Delaware. He used to come out here pretty frequently, and apparently even stayed here a bit in Takoma Park. It's always been widely known (on the East Coast at least) that the DMV, Mo county, Uptown DC, and much of northern PG etc are heavy trend setters in shoe game and overall fashion. It's like it's own bubble of the Black fashion world. That even dates back to the Black Broadway days on U Street.
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