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Actually i just read somewhere that Philly actually has the largest population in America. Not sure though Philly, Boston and NYC all have a very high percentage and large population.
I am only half Irish the other half Italian - which in Philly would be pretty normal either or or both
this town may actually be the Irish capital; dubbed the Irish Riviera: Spring Lake NJ
A lot of the suburbs of Philadelphia are very Irish. Here's the list: Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed
Boston has a significantly more Irish character than NYC or Philly. You see it when you look at their recent mayors and the composition of their City Council. You see it when you ride the T and see the Boston Globe ads with the shamrocks every year. You see it in the Boston Celtics. And you even see it in movies like "The Town." You don't really have to consult data to know this.
NYC has a decidely more Jewish character. I don't think there should be much argument about that.
Philadelphia has more of an Italian character.
I agree with this even though there are big populations of Irish, Italians and Jews in all three cities.
Does this mean Baltimore has a decidedly Polish character or have I been watching too much Season 2 of The Wire?
Does this mean Baltimore has a decidedly Polish character or have I been watching too much of The Wire?
That was the worse season of the Wire. I applaud you for being attentive enough to watch it.
I don't know that much about Baltimore. While the city's definitely more ethnic than DC, it is far less so than Philadelphia, imo. Baltimore seems much more black/white with ethnic remnants here or there. I'm not sure if they have a large, discrete European ethnic group that plays a large role in politics on the city or metro level (other than Jewish). It's not like New Jersey where you clearly see the Italian influence.
Well, I don't see accents and languages as being substantive necessarily.
I think the Italian identity is very substantive in the sense that their community has a substantial impact on city politics and government hiring/contracting.
I'm not saying that the accents are necessarily the major indicator of the culture having subsidid. I'm saying the lack of accents are just one example of the overall assimilation. The Irish and Italians are definitely well represented in local government, but I do think the generations of assimilation have taken their toll on some of that Irish and Italian culture. The accent remark is merely one example. Many of these politicians may have a name like "Murphy" or "Cicillini" but a good number of them were born to Parents who were also born here. There's less connection to the old country today than there was when the first waves of immigrants from Italy and Ireland arrived. Obviously these cultures are still alive and celebrated today, but I don't think the "Irish" Boston or "Italian" Philadelphia is as apparent in daily life as it was decades ago. Combined with the new waves of immigrants to these cities like the Latino populations and Caribbean (in Boston), the old Irish and Italian cultures are masked even further.
I'm not saying that the accents are necessarily the major indicator of the culture having subsidid. I'm saying the lack of accents are just one example of the overall assimilation. The Irish and Italians are definitely well represented in local government, but I do think the generations of assimilation have taken their toll on some of that Irish and Italian culture. The accent remark is merely one example. Many of these politicians may have a name like "Murphy" or "Cicillini" but a good number of them were born to Parents who were also born here. There's less connection to the old country today than there was when the first waves of immigrants from Italy and Ireland arrived. Obviously these cultures are still alive and celebrated today, but I don't think the "Irish" Boston or "Italian" Philadelphia is as apparent in daily life as it was decades ago. Combined with the new waves of immigrants to these cities like the Latino populations and Caribbean (in Boston), the old Irish and Italian cultures are masked even further.
Well, I guess when I think "Italian" identity, I think more or less Italian-American identity. The important thing in my view is that you have a large number of people who identify with a larger Italian-American regional community. That's what gives a region a certain ethnic character, imo, notwithstanding the absence of ostensible cultural hallmarks (i.e., language, parades, etc.).
That was the worse season of the Wire. I applaud you for being attentive enough to watch it.
I don't know that much about Baltimore. While the city's definitely more ethnic than DC, it is far less so than Philadelphia, imo. Baltimore seems much more black/white with ethnic remnants here or there. I'm not sure if they have a large, discrete European ethnic group that plays a large role in politics on the city or metro level (other than Jewish). It's not like New Jersey where you clearly see the Italian influence.
I'm not saying that the accents are necessarily the major indicator of the culture having subsidid. I'm saying the lack of accents are just one example of the overall assimilation. The Irish and Italians are definitely well represented in local government, but I do think the generations of assimilation have taken their toll on some of that Irish and Italian culture. The accent remark is merely one example. Many of these politicians may have a name like "Murphy" or "Cicillini" but a good number of them were born to Parents who were also born here. There's less connection to the old country today than there was when the first waves of immigrants from Italy and Ireland arrived. Obviously these cultures are still alive and celebrated today, but I don't think the "Irish" Boston or "Italian" Philadelphia is as apparent in daily life as it was decades ago. Combined with the new waves of immigrants to these cities like the Latino populations and Caribbean (in Boston), the old Irish and Italian cultures are masked even further.
would agree on the influence diminishing (seems less so with each generation)
Seeing as Boston and Philly have pretty similar proportions Irish and Italian (meaning both pretty significant in both) I wonder why the Irish is more pronounced in Boston and Italian in Philly.
Maybe there is a history to the politics etc that drove this.
Are you just limiting this to European ethnic groups, or something?
No.
I don't think DC has a very "ethnic" character to it. Being more racially diverse as a metro area does not mean that it has more of an ethnic character, particularly when many of the immigrant groups in the area have not been there long enough to make any significant inroads into regional politics (or have a larger cultural impact on the region). DC has a relatively nascent status as an immigrant city.
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