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I grew up in a suburb of Boston. When I studied abroad most non-us students didn't know what Massachusetts was. However the majority of them new about Boston. I'm sure it's similar with other cities like Chicago, Seattle, etc.
Chicago is way more famous than the state of Illinois, which hasn't produced anything noteworthy since Lincoln.
While I see what you're saying, at least people have heard of Illinois (at least I think). They may not know anything about it, but they know it exists.
Most people seem to be surprised that there is a state called "New York". They only know of the city.
While I see what you're saying, at least people have heard of Illinois (at least I think). They may not know anything about it, but they know it exists.
Most people seem to be surprised that there is a state called "New York". They only know of the city.
Really? Most people are surprised there's a state called "New York?" Either you're being dramatic, or you don't have a clue. Which is it?
Few American cities register with most people overseas--talking about the 9-to-5 guy living in Nice, Huainan, or Pune. Omaha? Salt Lake City? Cincinnati? Hardly. Ask that guy the difference between Milwaukee and Minneapolis or Cleveland and Cincinnati and you'll get a blank stare.
"State" has relatively little relevance because the concept doesn't translate directly to "province" and few national provinces have the local significance as "state" has to Americans. Even within the US, the distinctive flavor of the major cities is usually because they are different from the overall flavor of the state.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Maintainschaos
Surprising statement, as 1) there are things, places, business, (and nearly 4 million people) outside of the Chicago area in Illinois; 2) the inability of people to pronounce Illinois has nothing to do with whether the state is or isn't famous; and 3) NY and GA (and MI to a lesser extent) are absolutely dominated by their major city/metro area (as are states like WA, OR, AZ, IN, MN etc.).
1) And those places haven't produced much of anything to make the national radar, or any radar, really. The Chicago metro is 65% of the state's population, but Illinois' other metros outside of it, like Rockford and Champaign-Urbana are all still quite close to Chicago.
2) I disagree. If a state was famous, the correct pronunciation would be well-known and used (see Connecticut). The fact that many people pronounce the 's' in Illinois just hammers home my point that the state is grossly overshadowed by Chicagoland.
3) No. All of those states have well known and decently large secondary/niche cities (Buffalo/Rochester/Albany/Syracuse, Savannah/Augusta, Spokane, Eugene, Tucson/Flagstaff, Bloomington/Notre Dame, Rochester) that have some political input. They're not close to the level of the primate city, but they are far enough away and have something unique about them that they've made the national radar. Prior to going on Wikipedia, the only other city in Illinois I knew about other than Chicago was Springfield, and that's solely because it's a capital. Illinois also seems to have its other cities clustered within a 3 hour radius of Chicago, which is much closer than these other states. More than any other state, Illinois lives in the shadow of one metro.
1) And those places haven't produced much of anything to make the national radar, or any radar, really. The Chicago metro is 65% of the state's population, but Illinois' other metros outside of it, like Rockford and Champaign-Urbana are all still quite close to Chicago.
2) I disagree. If a state was famous, the correct pronunciation would be well-known and used (see Connecticut). The fact that many people pronounce the 's' in Illinois just hammers home my point that the state is grossly overshadowed by Chicagoland.
3) No. All of those states have well known and decently large secondary/niche cities (Buffalo/Rochester/Albany/Syracuse, Savannah/Augusta, Spokane, Eugene, Tucson/Flagstaff, Bloomington/Notre Dame, Rochester) that have some political input. They're not close to the level of the primate city, but they are far enough away and have something unique about them that they've made the national radar. Prior to going on Wikipedia, the only other city in Illinois I knew about other than Chicago was Springfield, and that's solely because it's a capital. Illinois also seems to have its other cities clustered within a 3 hour radius of Chicago, which is much closer than these other states. More than any other state, Illinois lives in the shadow of one metro.
I'm not arguing that Chicago isn't more famous than Illinois, because it is. But I strongly believe you are woefully misinformed if you don't think Atlanta dominates GA, Boston dominates MA, the Twin Cities dominate MN, or that New York City isn't enormously more famous than NY state! (Not to mention that nobody in Illinois or the Midwest thinks of Champaign-Urbana or Springfield as "clustered" about Chicago.)
Pronunciation also has nothing to do with fame. Iowa is probably easier to pronounce than Shanghai or Istanbul, but that doesn't make Iowa more famous.
I have both lived in Michigan and abroad and have had a different experience.
Detroit is an internationally known city. It pioneered the automobile assembly line and is the headquarters of all American car companies. Michigan is famous within the U.S., but as far as the world goes isn't nearly as famous as Detroit. It's not even close.
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