this is a work in progress, so excuse the messy look and the fact its not done yet, as i need some help.
anyways what this is is a map of the US based on cultural, demographic, linguistic and geographic realities rather than just arbitrary state lines that were drawn up 200 years ago.
ive classified the country into several regions which are numbered on the map
1-Greater Minnesota/Upper midwest/"fargoland"/canada jr/nova scandonavia
-this region corresponds rougly to the "upper midwest" accent which was lampooned in the movie "fargo". the region encompasses all of the counties in the midwest were scandonavians are the largest ethnic group. the area is also overwelmingly lutheran and most of its counties give a sizable, yet not always majority vote to the democrats. the region consists of the coldest parts of the midwest and contains both the northern forests and northern prairies. the black hills and western south dakota area are not included despite still having a sizable scandonavian community. this is because that area has more of a cowboy/outlaw/western vibe due to its terrain and culture (ie-deadwood)
2-interior plains/middle america/prairie peninsula/cornbelt
-this region is mostly centered on the tallgrass section of the great plains. it is mostly farmland/rural but includes such cities as springfield and peoria, il, omaha, kansas city, topeka and wichita ks, lincoln ne and des moines. many of these cities exist on the edge of the high plains. the region tends to be somewhat conservative in politics. the culture and dialect tends to be what is considered "general american". the accent seems neutral to most north americans and ethnicity/religion tends to be white Christian, the divisions in each being a balanced mix of german/anglo-saxon and catholic/lutheran/methodist/baptist. AKA is region is american normalness/blandness defined
3-empty quarter/wild west/frontier west/the real Bible belt
-this area tends to be sparsely populated and very very republican. it consists of high plains/badlands and the rocky mountains and its plateaus and basins. there is a ranching culture in place in the east of this region but most of this land is undesirable for settlement and cold in winter.
4-colorado/front range
-an oasis of moderate liberalism and dense population in the empty quarter. the culture of this area tends to borrow alot from the outdoor-loving, marijuana-tolerating northwest. an exception is colorado springs which is very right wing and religious. the ethnicities of the white people here tend to be mixed germanic/anglo/irish as is the pacific northwest. there is a growing latino pressence in this area as well.
5-mormondom/deseret/greater utah
-areas where the latter day saint church is the dominant religion and "anglo-saxon" is the dominate ethnicity.
6-mexamerica/southwest/aztlan
-this region is dominated by mexican/spanish/latinos. it is warm in climate and consists of many deserts. it also encompasses large areas of southwestern native indian peoples. the religion of the area tends to be catholic and the politics are geared towards the democratic party.
7-texas/south plains/howdyland/home on the range
-this region leans republican and the basis of its culture is southern/dixie. however the terrain tends to be prairie/ranchland. rodeos and cowboy ranch culture dominates this area and their are many adherants of baptist Christianity. a large deal of the white populace here considers their background to be "american" as do many people in the southeast/dixieland. tulsa, oklahoma city, amarillo, waco and dallas are in this region. the oil industry dominates much of this area.
8-prairie borderlands/quasi-arkansas/quasi-midwest/south midlands(west)
-this area can be considered as belonging to region number 2 but has more southern/dixie undertones. most of this area corresponds to the "little dixie" area of central-north missouri which was settled by southerners and practised slavery. the area has more baptists than much of the midwest and has more people who consider their ancestry to be "american" rather than german or english or norse.
9-Great lakes/industrial heartland/interior rustbelt
-this area tends to be manufacturing-intensive and includes large cities with high black populations. the area also tends to vote democratic. the region rougly corresponds to the "great lakes" accent which is very nasal and people tend to draw out their A's. this dialect was lampooned by saturaday night live for their "chicago bears superfans" skit. large polish and german populations inhabit this region and churchs tend to be Catholic.
10-industrial prairies/interior lowlands/manufacturing heartland
-i was considering attaching this to region number 2 or number 9. this area is like region 2 but it has more of a manufacturing base (although it does have plenty of farming as well). like region 9, the area is heavily german and catholic although there are also several methodist-majority counties. politics tend to vary between liberal and conservative.
11-near south/interior borderlands/quasi-kentucky/quasi-midwest
-this area, like area 8, is a mix of midwestern and souther culture. the city of st louis which is within this area has several midwestern/manuffacturing/germanic infleuences yet also has somewhat of a french/new orleans jazz culture/riverboat culture within it. the southern tip of illinois (little egypt) tends to have accents resembling those of the south. the southern part of indiana features souther-type archetecture, accents and is quite conservative. People here are more likely to be baptist and consider themselves of "american" descent. Louisville Ky, also in this area has both midwestern (archetecture, germans) and southern (accents, food, slang) influences.
12-western new york/eastern greatlakes
-i am still considering making this part of region 9. Buffalo and rochester people share almost the same accents as chicago and detroit. this area also has a large manufacturing base and large german and polish populations and is overwelmingly catholic and liberal. it does not seem to have the "rowhouse asthetic" as true east-coast cities do. the rural areas of this region however tend to be more irish/anglo-saxon than the rural areas around detroit and chicago. towns like ithaca and cortland ny have a bit more of a new england vibe to them.
13-upper appalachia
-region dominated by the appalachian hills and mountains. centers of mining and steel processing. includes binghamton ny, youngstown ohio, pittsburgh, and northern panhandle of west virginia. tends to be liberal-moderate in politics and german/czeh/slavic in ethnicity. cities and towns boast many rowhouses like east coast cities do.
14-mid applalachia/appalachian borderlands
-thsi region consists mostly of northern west virginia and the far west of maryland. dialects, ethnicity and culture in this area seem somewhat southern/dixie but the area still very much revolves around pittsburgh and even contains some far exurbs of washington dc.
ok, i am not finished this and, as i stated before, i need some thoughts.
firstly, do you agree with my regions above?
secondly, does new england extend at all into northeastern new york?
are boise and spokane part of the pacific northwest culturally?
is new york city part of the same cultural region as philly and baltimore?
is san francisco part of the pacific northwest? what about the mt shasta area?
is albany part of the same region as new york city? as new england?
is harrisburg appalachian?
is connecticut new england or becoming more like new york city? (italian)
any thoughts or feedback would be highly appreciated, thanks
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Wtf?
God I hate southern WV
