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IMO, the most quintessentially American state is Ohio, which has its origins in the most standard British colonial area: Western New England. British-Americans from Connecticut and other areas of Western New England were among the first settlers to pioneer Ohio in the early 19th century.
Listen to the local accents in Connecticut River towns like Essex, CT, Holyoke, MA or Brattleboro, VT, and you will be surprised to hear people in that dialectal zone sound much more like Midwesterners than people in other, much closer major cities like New York, Boston and Providence, which all have very distinct, very polarizing non-rhotic accents.
As a child, I remember visiting my great-aunt in Putnam, CT, where people generally speak like RI folks. By the time you arrive in Manchester, CT further west on US-44, the features of the stereotypical RI accent had diffused so radically, it was hard to believe you were still in the same geographic region.
Former CT State Senator, Sam Caliguiri, who grew up in Waterbury, CT, is a good example of the Western New England accent that formed the precursor for all other Northern and Northwestern accents in the United States, especially since Caliguri comes from a working-class Italian-American background.
FYI, Italian-Americans typically feature the strongest local or regional accents of any European-American ethnic group -- regardless of locale -- due to later arrival in America and, subsequently, more recent working-class backgrounds.
The reason why the Western New England accents didn't lose their rhoticity in the late 18th and early 19th centuries is because this region, due to its general lack of saltwater ports, didn't have the same level of exposure to British influences as other Northeastern and Southeastern port cities after the American Revolution, such as Portsmouth, Boston, Providence, Newport, New York, Jamestown, Charleston, Savannah and Brunswick, for example. This also helped preserve their early American identity, too.
Shortly after the conclusion of the American Revolution, English English underwent what is known as the "Great Vowel Shift." One of the major outcomes of the GVS included the deletion of the consonant "R" sound where it historically occurred, so words like "park" came to sound like "pahk" by the conclusion of the GVS. Any American cities that had frequent contact with England after the American Revolution and up until the War of 1812 acquired some of the vowel and consonant sounds through emulation, including non-rhoticity.
Since Western New England was largely immune to the GVS due to their lack of major port cities and were more interested in pioneering the frontier (at that time, Upstate New York, Ohio and Michigan), they circumvented the dialectal change going on in nearby regions. That's why people in Wisconsin do not sound radically different from people in the Berkshires of Western MA.
Speaking of the Berkshires, another good example of the accent similarities between Western New England and the Upper Midwest is former Pittsfield, MA mayor, Jim Roberto (another Italian-American). You won't even believe your ears! LOL.
Furthermore, the Case Western Reserve was largely settled at a time when immigration to America was virtually non-existent, and the American population hit an all-time maximum of nativity. Between 1810 and 1820, it is estimated that around 95-97% of the American populace was born in America. This ensured early Midwestern settlement was decisively American in flavor.
Since most of the early Ohio settlers were WASP's, and the WASP is the "archetype American," Ohio fits the bill of the most quintessentially American state better than other Midwestern states, IMO. Other Midwestern states like Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota were largely populated by Germans, Scandinavians and Irish people in the 19th and early 20th centuries. By the time major cities like Chicago and St. Louis were settled, German and Irish immigrants were already pouring into America.
Last edited by Bert_from_back_East; 02-03-2018 at 01:34 PM..
IMO, the most quintessentially American state is Ohio, which has its origins in the most standard British colonial area: Western New England.
Listen to the local accents in Connecticut River towns like Essex, CT, Holyoke, MA or Brattleboro, VT, and you will be surprised to hear people in that dialectal zone sound much more like Midwesterners than people in other, much closer major cities like New York, Boston and Providence, which all have very distinct non-rhotic accents.
As a child, I remember visiting my great-aunt in Putnam, CT, where people south like RI folks, and by the time, you got to Manchester, CT, the accent had changed so radically, it was hard to believe you were still in the state -- and very tiny state at that.
Former CT State Senator, Sam Caliguiri, who grew up in Waterbury, CT, is a good example of this accent, especially since he comes from a working-class Italian-American background. FYI, Italian-Americans typically feature the strongest local or regional accents of any European-American ethnic group, regardless of local, due to later arrival in America and, hence, more recent working-class backgrounds.
Irish in Chicago have stronger accents than Italians.
And CT accents don't sound Midwestern specifically. They lean more to Great Lakes sounding which straddles the Upper Midwest and Northeast.
In Cincinnati the accents are more similar to Philly and Baltimore accents since in the US dialects (East of the Rockies) vary on a North-South continuum as opposed to East-West. Nobody here in Cincinnati sounds passably like from Connecticut but people here could go unnoticed in a lot of the Mid-Atlantic (in speech NOT appearance as we are more Germanic)
Also, are there even that many Italians in Baltimore? All the thick accented people I met there were German/Irish/English. Barely met many Italians even in Little Italy. I suppose Nancy Pelosi counts though. Yet she could passably be a Northern Kentuckian with her voice haha
FYI, there isn’t a Pennsylvanian on this planet who considers themselves a Southerner.
But everybody else calls the people who live in rural PA between Pittsburgh and Philly Southerners. particularly people from NY, NJ, and New England. And West Coasters. Central PA is considered a bubble of Alabama in between two Northern cities. It is definitely the most Southern (culturally and statistically) area of the Northeast. This is by far.
The reason why the Western New England accents didn't lose their rhoticity in the late 18th and early 19th centuries is because this region, due to its general lack of saltwater ports, didn't have the same level of exposure to British influences as other Northeastern and Southeastern port cities after the American Revolution, such as Portsmouth, Boston, Providence, Newport, New York, Jamestown, Charleston, Savannah and Brunswick, for example. This also helped preserve their early American identity, too.
Philly and Baltimore had said saltwater ports but didn't develop the contrived non-rhotic Received Pronunciation. I think it might have had more to do with identity. Subsequent non rhotic accents in Philly and Baltimore (especially the latter) always had more of a much recent Southern influence as opposed to British though. Italians in South Philly would take on Black speech patterns for example and vice versa.
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Shortly after the conclusion of the American Revolution, English English underwent what is known as the "Great Vowel Shift." One of the major outcomes of the GVS included the deletion of the consonant "R" sound where it historically occurred, so words like "park" came to sound like "pahk" by the conclusion of the GVS. Any American cities that had frequent contact with England after the American Revolution and up until the War of 1812 acquired some of the vowel and consonant sounds through emulation, including non-rhoticity.
Actually the GVS predated the Revolution. Non rhoticity itself was a contrived feature of Received Pronunciation that was taking hold of GB around that time.
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Since Western New England was largely immune to the GVS due to their lack of major port cities and were more interested in pioneering the frontier (at that time, Upstate New York, Ohio and Michigan), they circumvented the dialectal change going on in nearby regions. That's why people in Wisconsin do not sound radically different from people in the Berkshires of Western MA.
True. Americans in the Midwest have their ancestry in the Northeast mostly.
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Speaking of the Berkshires, another good example of the accent similarities between Western New England and the Upper Midwest is former Pittsfield, MA mayor, Jim Roberto (another Italian-American). You won't even believe your ears! LOL.
Furthermore, the Case Western Reserve was largely settled at a time when immigration to America was virtually non-existent, and the American population hit an all-time maximum of nativity. Between 1810 and 1820, it is estimated that around 95-97% of the American populace was born in America. This ensured early Midwestern settlement was decisively American in flavor.
I like you. Reps for you.
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Since most of the early Ohio settlers were WASP's, and the WASP is the "archetype American," Ohio fits the bill of the most quintessentially American state better than other Midwestern states, IMO. Other Midwestern states like Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota were largely populated by Germans, Scandinavians and Irish people in the 19th and early 20th centuries. By the time major cities like Chicago and St. Louis were settled, German and Irish immigrants were already pouring into America.
So true. English ancestry is very common in Cincinnati and Ohio in general.
Also, a lot of our English ancestry can be traced (pre New England and Mid Atlantic arrivals) to the West Country which also was a very common arrival in the Mid-Atlantic. Even our accent today has West Country features. I don't mean rhoticity either. Even without rhoticity Ohioans don't sound vastly different from their WASPy counterparts in the West Country. I saw a Youtube vid with a West Country fellow (I think from Devon) and he could have been from Southern Ohio passably.
But everybody else calls the people who live in rural PA between Pittsburgh and Philly Southerners. particularly people from NY, NJ, and New England. And West Coasters. Central PA is considered a bubble of Alabama in between two Northern cities. It is definitely the most Southern (culturally and statistically) area of the Northeast. This is by far.
Ridicules.... totally pushing this with who the heck is everybody? Then you push it's Alabama yet?
Tell us what about Alabama in particular this Southerner-likeness is? Did you not get the old term "Pennsyltucky" even inferred Kentucky and not Alabama? But ... NO this merely being in the Pennsylvania rural region and mountain regions infers southern WHAT? Hillbilly-like and Rednecks? I will give you some redneckness..... but that is it. Rednecks-these are actually nationwide type and attitude anyway. New Yorkers use the Pocono mountain region as there playground. They don't need to go further into central PA unless hunters.
At least you didn't toss Pittsburgh into the Midwest too.... like you did Erie . I gotta be done with comments on this. You just can believe as you want. I only live in this PA Alabama majority of PA region I guess....according to you and a BIG chunk of PA is between Philly and Pittsburgh.
Ridicules.... totally pushing this with who the heck is everybody? Then you push it's Alabama yet?
Tell us what about Alabama in particular this Southerner-likeness is? Did you not get the old term "Pennsyltucky" even inferred Kentucky and not Alabama? But ... NO this merely being in the Pennsylvania rural region and mountain regions infers southern WHAT? Hillbilly-like and Rednecks? I will give you some redneckness..... but that is it. Rednecks-these are actually nationwide type and attitude anyway. New Yorkers use the Pocono mountain region as there playground. They don't need to go further into central PA unless hunters.
At least you didn't toss Pittsburgh into the Midwest too.... like you did Erie . I gotta be done with comments on this. You just can believe as you want. I only live in this PA Alabama majority of PA region I guess....according to you and a BIG chunk of PA is between Philly and Pittsburgh.
It is not just according to me. Nearly everybody refers to that area as Alabama. That is much more common than Pennsyltucky. Pennsyltucky is used to refer to the area south of Pittsburgh. I am not implying anything derogatory about Central PA. I am just staying the facts. It is a more Southern area that most Northeasterners refer to as the Alabama between Pittsburgh and Philly.
It is not just according to me. Nearly everybody refers to that area as Alabama. That is much more common than Pennsyltucky. Pennsyltucky is used to refer to the area south of Pittsburgh. I am not implying anything derogatory about Central PA. I am just staying the facts. It is a more Southern area that most Northeasterners refer to as the Alabama between Pittsburgh and Philly.
Yup. You are literally the only person who thinks this.
Yes, exactly. You hear it all the time. That area is referred to as Alabama more than anything else.
The only reference to Alabama I can think of is to infer ..... redneck country and mountain folk. If this is what you believe? Makes PA a quintessential (as a quality point) of the largest geographic area of most of PA. Oh.... and what isn't merely rednecks and valley farm rural? Is just all rest-belt.
I suppose Philly as Eastern elite and Pittsburgh as Midwest seals this win. . Won't go into Philly stereotyping as they are rude. But Stereotypes are apparently the win card for PA..... I need to realize I'm in Alabama more. I will take their milder winters and find myself liking Country music more ✔.....
Other checks:
- don't go 4-wheeling .... but know people who do ✔
- don't fish (yes when young) .... but plenty who do ✔
- don't own a gun or hunt ..... but know plenty who do ✔
- my local pubs (volunteer firehouse clubs) ..... have plenty of blue-collar types who do all above ✔
OK I concede.
Last edited by DavePa; 02-04-2018 at 07:55 AM..
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. I gotta be done with comments on this. You just can believe as you want. I only live in this PA Alabama majority of PA region I guess....according to you and a BIG chunk of PA is between Philly and Pittsburgh. 
. Won't go into Philly stereotyping as they are rude. But Stereotypes are apparently the win card for PA..... I need to realize I'm in Alabama more. I will take their milder winters and find myself liking Country music more ✔..... 
