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Agreed. In my opinion, Virginia is the most similar state to Kentucky. Heck, KY used to be a part of Virginia! The biggest difference to me is that you have a beach. The only place I have been in VA that didn't seem southern was the DC suburbs, but a lot of people say the same about the Cincinnati suburbs that are in KY. Louisville and Richmond seem a lot alike with similar architecture, accents, and nearly identical metro populations. Some people that live in the larger cities here wont have an accent, but you see that in every southern city of any size. Most of us do sound out the R's though. Come visit and see what you think. Hope you enjoy it here as much as I enjoy visiting your state.
I thought the same thing when I visited Richmond. It has a little bit more "Old South" charm than Louisville, but overall it felt overwhelmingly similar in size, culture, housing, etc., except Louisville might be a little bigger, and has a bigger downtown. If you mixed together Louisville and Lexington, I think you would get Richmond.
I have lived in many different states. I live right near Louisville on the Indiana side of the river. I definitely feel that Louisville (and the surrounding area) is a blend of the South, Midwest, and Appalachia. Also, I find it better to compare cities along the entire expanse of the Ohio River because they tend to have more in common with one another compared to Midwest cities or Southen cities.
Location: Huntersville/Charlotte, NC and Washington, DC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rooster21
Agreed. In my opinion, Virginia is the most similar state to Kentucky. Heck, KY used to be a part of Virginia! The biggest difference to me is that you have a beach. The only place I have been in VA that didn't seem southern was the DC suburbs, but a lot of people say the same about the Cincinnati suburbs that are in KY. Louisville and Richmond seem a lot alike with similar architecture, accents, and nearly identical metro populations. Some people that live in the larger cities here wont have an accent, but you see that in every southern city of any size. Most of us do sound out the R's though. Come visit and see what you think. Hope you enjoy it here as much as I enjoy visiting your state.
As a current resident of VA and a soon to be resident of KY you are right on point. The DC surburbs in some spots feel like a different country.
I think the Kentucky is in much less danger than Virginia of losing it's Southernness. Northern Virginia's sprawl is an ever present threat and has already swallowed decent towns like Warrenton, Front Royal, Winchester. Thankfully while your flagship metro areas are growing, in my view, the sprawl is held in check.
I have lived in many different states. I live right near Louisville on the Indiana side of the river. I definitely feel that Louisville (and the surrounding area) is a blend of the South, Midwest, and Appalachia. Also, I find it better to compare cities along the entire expanse of the Ohio River because they tend to have more in common with one another compared to Midwest cities or Southen cities.
I can see what you mean. I dont live in Louisville so my opinion is based on visiting and I will admit that I haven't spent any time on the Indiana side of Louisville. I live in Owensboro and many of us go to Evansville, Indiana for shopping and entertainment because it's the closest city of any size. Owensboro and Evansville aren't totally different from one another, but I can tell Im not in Kentucky anymore when visiting E'ville. The accents are different and its faster paced in Evansville, but the landscape is the exact same-cornfields, hills, and a river.
I can see what you mean. I dont live in Louisville so my opinion is based on visiting and I will admit that I haven't spent any time on the Indiana side of Louisville. I live in Owensboro and many of us go to Evansville, Indiana for shopping and entertainment because it's the closest city of any size. Owensboro and Evansville aren't totally different from one another, but I can tell Im not in Kentucky anymore when visiting E'ville. The accents are different and its faster paced in Evansville, but the landscape is the exact same-cornfields, hills, and a river.
I was in the ER with my cousin the other day when a family came in that I knew right away wasn't from here...and I was right. They were from Evansville.
I think river cities that are all along the same stretch of water all have something in common.
I every time I go on a trip to an undisputed Southern state I come back convinced Kentucky is part of the Midwest, at least the southern parts of Midwestern states like Ohio, Indiana, & Illinois. The main differences I notice btw Kentucky and those places I visit...
1. Land use is totally different in rural areas - KY is 90% farmland while the South is mostly pine forests for logging.
as much as i hate to keep this going, i have to interject as this is simply an innacuracy. due to the fact the OH, IN, and IL are mostly flat, they are almost all farmland. thats simply not the case for KY and it certainly is not 90 percent farmland.
although weve seen far too many maps here, ill have to show this one from the forest service to give you an idea
and when talking about land use, specifically farming, have you forgotten about tobacco? thats really only grown in kentucky and north carolina, and to a lesser extent tennesee, virginia, and south carolina. ill spare you the map on that one, unless youd like to see it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by censusdata
2. The accents are very different. A true Southern accent is much higher pitched while most KY accents are deeper with different pronunciation styles. Down there the "r" sound isn't used as much (Chalot, Noth Caolina) while here it is emphasized (Charrlut, Noorrth Carolina)
this once again is simply innacurate. im not sure how to define a "true" southern accent. the accent found in kentucky isnt different at all from what youd find around winston salem (at least comparing it to folks ive met from there). not sure what youve based that off of. rhotic accents (the arrrrr ones) are by far the most prevelant accent in the entire south.
i hate to make these too long, but heres an example of what many carolinians sound like, fits your description of the kentucky accent http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQvjtttVurg
Quote:
Originally Posted by censusdata
3. I didn't see any hats or car stickers for Northern pro or college teams. In KY people have very strong family ties to Midwestern cities (due to family members migrating there for work). The only Southern pro teams with any fan base at all are the Atlanta Braves & Tennessee Titans, all the other popular pro teams are from Ohio, Illinois, or Missouri.
im not sure where in the state you are (louisville maybe?) but that comes from people who have moved down here. youll see plenty of that in south carolina and north carolina (especially charlotte) as those cities get more and more ohoians each day.
these really arent good ways to try to gauge culture though(besides dialect). im sorry to drag this on, but i hate to make claims without examples
Last edited by JimmyJohnWilson; 03-28-2010 at 08:42 PM..
Seriously I got to thinking about this the other day some way I hadn't before: does the Ohio River unite people or divide people? People always talk of the Mississippi River as a region of people with similar characteristics on either side, people united on both sides by one river.
I'm starting to feel that Southern Illinois/ Indiana/ Ohio and most of Kentucky have more in common with each other than they do with other places further North or South. The only exceptions are when you compare a large city (Cincinnati, etc) to a rural place (Williamstown) across the river.
i'd say metroplis il has quite a bit in common with the jackson purchase, and with northwest tennessee to. if youve ever talked to anyone from mayfield or fulton theyll tell you that TN is like them.
why is it that the far southern portions of some of these states influence KY, cant it be the other way around? far southern parts of these states are more like Ky AND Tn culturally (at least most of it).
but the ohio river has long been a dividing line, look into the northwest ordinance. the mississippi supposedly divided east/west but that doesnt really mean anything culturally.
just sit down and think what really makes a place's culture. dont think about superficial things like gas stations and chains. think about dialect, cuisine, manners, religion, and other real examples of culture.
This thread reminds me of when a former co-worker (who is from Virginia) debated with me over whether Kentucky was part of the south or not. He claimed that Virginia was "the south" while Kentucky was "the north". Huh? Aren't both states pretty much side-by-side (West Virginia getting the middle seat)? In hindsight I should have said "Nah, Kentucky is the south. Virgina, that's just the EAST COAST".
I'm a kentucky native, but someone recently asked me if Kentucky is a southern state or if it's the midwest. The weather channel called it the midwest. And I have seen it referenced as such.
I say it's a southern state. But others say it's not. I say it is because of the culture and the attitude is much more southern than midwestern.
What do you guys think?
If you look into the Civil War records you'll find that Kentucky was part of the Union Army, not the Confederacy. So that would make it "MidWest".
If you look into the Civil War records you'll find that Kentucky was part of the Union Army, not the Confederacy. So that would make it "MidWest".
not only is that a completely inaccurate way of gauging the culture of the state of kentucky, but that is not even an accurate description of kentucky's role in the civil war as kentucky was claimed by the confederacy. it really depends on which sides perspective you look at that from. theres confederate monuments everywhere here. take from that whatever you wish. and when taking this from a historical perspective, you have completely ignored the northwest ordinance, jim crow laws and a number of other historical events that clearly group kentucky separate from the midwest.
once you get away from history, and start talking about the current culture of the state, youll find even more reasons not to group it that way
Last edited by JimmyJohnWilson; 03-29-2010 at 10:45 AM..
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The only place I have been in VA that didn't seem southern was the DC suburbs, but a lot of people say the same about the Cincinnati suburbs that are in KY. Louisville and Richmond seem a lot alike with similar architecture, accents, and nearly identical metro populations. Some people that live in the larger cities here wont have an accent, but you see that in every southern city of any size. Most of us do sound out the R's though. Come visit and see what you think. Hope you enjoy it here as much as I enjoy visiting your state. 
