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All of these posters that are trying to prove that Maryland is southern should stop it. Are you serious? Can you honestly walk out of the subway in downtown Bethesda and say "Gee this is the south"? Even NOVA is not considered the south anymore. Let kill this whole accent thing right now. Have any of you ever been to the southside of Chicago? AA's in Chicago have a distinctive accent with a southern twist. They say "my antie" for aunt; What you "wont" for want; I'm "fitina go." I can go on and on. But they are definitely not southern. The culture of Maryland is definitely Mid Atlantic/Northeast. Google the Northeast corridor and come back and tell me what you find. Maryland is also a very progressive, liberal leaning blue state, just like PA, NY, CT, RI, and MA. What states in the south are blue? VA? NC? SC? GA? FL? TX? MS? LA? The answer is none of the above! Accents and food don't define a state. The people do. The characteristics of TODAY'S MARYLAND are more in line with the Northeast than the South.
I AGREE
Chicago has that southern migration as well as all the other midwestern states,i was just observing how southern Kanye West sounds when he talked during the Grammys last night receiving an award.I was shocked when i went to chicago at how southern many sound.I kept saying wow you sound mad southern lol.
Whats funny is even in NYC,when i first moved there from MD and some people said i was country,there was always someone who said something along the lines of""NO WAY,I BEEN DOWNSOUTH AND HEARD COUNTRY AND HE AINT IT,HE DONT HAVE A NEW YORK ACCENT,BUT HE AINT COUNTRY,NO WAY!"nowadays i have more a tri-state accent having been a NY resident for 6 years.I just laugh,i walk outside of DC and i just get a northern vibe and the energy,currently im in DC visited,i wake up and see all this energy and traffic and people and say this is definetly northern,the attitudes some city residents carry,very city,the usage of the metro system being concurrent to NYC though totally different in looks and etc lol,i walked to good hope rd to the corner store,felt this bitter air,came back inside saw the weather man say next sunday could be a possible snowstorm for DC and said oh yea this is the south
riiighht
lol
JUST LISTEN TO THE AUDIOS,,EVEN THE TWO EASTERN SHORE BOYS HAD DISTANT ACCENTS FROM WHAT YOUR USUALLY LIKELY TO HEAR IN STATES VIRGINIA ON SOUTH.
Last edited by MD_IS_NORTH; 02-11-2008 at 03:57 PM..
The site is not meant to be a complete summary of all of the dialects of the state.
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The sites actors are not portraying accents or dialects,these are traditional accents found in its natives from different areas within MD,They may attend college or acting class,yet the site clearly says there biographies are real and they truly come from the areas they mention.There dialects are not fake.
Quote:
Here you will find downloadable mp3 recordings of accent/dialect speakers from the region you selected, plus textfiles giving their biographical details, and scholarly commentary in some cases
Quote:
Subject One is a twenty year old student at a small liberal arts college in Northern Maryland. He has had a few theatre classes, but has made no effort to correct his dialect. His brother (subject two), is a freshman (eighteen years old) at the same school. Both young men grew up in a small town on Maryland's Eastern Shore, where little has changed in the last 50 years. The big excitement on the weekends is still to "Roll the Bowl", meaning drive around the parking lot of the town's bowling alley. Although their mother is not from the area, the father and grandfather grew up there on the property where they still live. Although subject one seems to think his accent is not as pronounced as his brother's, it is still the interviewer's impression that it is actually more authentic to the region. Recorded by Elizabeth van den Berg on 10/14/99, and edited by Shawn M. Muller on 11/29/99. Recording length 00:03:33
The biography of the speakers is real,the dialects are too,if they are preparing them for acting they are using people who have the traditional dialects of the region which gives whatever play or movie a very realistic approach which further proves my point.
Someone from eastern shore goes to North Carolina,they are likely to be called CITY!,that is because even though there may a dialect thats similar,it is not the same by a longshot.
I think Atlanta, Tampa, Nashville, Jacksonville, Raleigh, Charlotte, Dallas, and Houston are legitimate cities! Even there the pace of life is different, its hard to describe but it just feels nicer. So I don't know what about the northeast corridor, LA, and SF that make people in these places especially rude and unfriendly.
Historically Maryland was a southern state. DUring the colonial years, it was considered a southern colony based on the economics and lifestyles, I learned that in middle school. Even the darker aspects of southern history are true for Maryland. Uncle TOm's Cabin was based on events that took place in Montgomery County, near where Bethesda is today. I learned that in high school. I was also taught that Harriet Tubman led the slaves to "the north" for freedom and north meant Pennsylvania. The historical aspect is the only aspect where I would not wish Maryland to be "southern".
But times are different today. There is a lot of racism up north and Boston was the last major city to desegregate its schools and white Bostonians responded with rioting and violence, attacking school buses filled with black children. Cities like NY and Philly and Boston are heavily segregrated even to this day and white flight is huge. We have a relatively large number of middle class African Americans compared to most northern cities and this is more typical of the South, like Atlanta and Richmond where there is a noticeable number of blacks in the middle class unlike places like Boston where racism is intense and a minority has no chance of being accepted.
I've heard that places like SOuth and East Boston are especially racist, as much if not more so than the most stereotypical "redneck" town in East Texas or Mississippi. Even white people are racist among themselves, you don't even have to black to be hated and attacked, you just need to be not Irish or their particular type of Irish. Ethnic neighborhoods in Philadelphia are also heavily racist and closed-minded. I think people of different ethnicies mix relatively well in Maryland (though not as well as we all should) and this is more characteristic of the South, maybe not the VERY rural south, but of cities and larger towns in the South.
I think Atlanta, Tampa, Nashville, Jacksonville, Raleigh, Charlotte, Dallas, and Houston are legitimate cities! Even there the pace of life is different, its hard to describe but it just feels nicer. So I don't know what about the northeast corridor, LA, and SF that make people in these places especially rude and unfriendly.
Historically Maryland was a southern state. DUring the colonial years, it was considered a southern colony based on the economics and lifestyles, I learned that in middle school. Even the darker aspects of southern history are true for Maryland. Uncle TOm's Cabin was based on events that took place in Montgomery County, near where Bethesda is today. I learned that in high school. I was also taught that Harriet Tubman led the slaves to "the north" for freedom and north meant Pennsylvania. The historical aspect is the only aspect where I would not wish Maryland to be "southern".
But times are different today. There is a lot of racism up north and Boston was the last major city to desegregate its schools and white Bostonians responded with rioting and violence, attacking school buses filled with black children. Cities like NY and Philly and Boston are heavily segregrated even to this day and white flight is huge. We have a relatively large number of middle class African Americans compared to most northern cities and this is more typical of the South, like Atlanta and Richmond where there is a noticeable number of blacks in the middle class unlike places like Boston where racism is intense and a minority has no chance of being accepted.
I've heard that places like SOuth and East Boston are especially racist, as much if not more so than the most stereotypical "redneck" town in East Texas or Mississippi. Even white people are racist among themselves, you don't even have to black to be hated and attacked, you just need to be not Irish or their particular type of Irish. Ethnic neighborhoods in Philadelphia are also heavily racist and closed-minded. I think people of different ethnicies mix relatively well in Maryland (though not as well as we all should) and this is more characteristic of the South, maybe not the VERY rural south, but of cities and larger towns in the South.
Different ethnic groups interacting with each other is by far a NORTHERN thing waaaaaay before southern.Even out west,the interacting is still more common than it is in the south.(ATL and charlotte are like the only cities that tend to have moderate numbers of interacting melting pots).NYC is the biggest melting pot in the northeastern corridor.Better yet most of its cities are the largest melting pots,from DC/BMORE/BOSTON (to a degree)
Historically Marylands credibility as southern was never concrete,it was popularized by mason dixon believers,yet history still contradicts the mason dixon which further leads many to group Maryland as northern,having always truly been north regardless of the conservative popularization of the mason dixon line,which has now died due to things such as the BOS-WASH megapolis or the Northeastern Corridor.The southern influences either come from the influence being brought northward from its southern migration,however overall its northern in more ways than it will ever be southern.
Anyways,yes Boston has racism,Nyc has racism,it is everywere,nooses and swatizkas found in rural jersey and Nyc towns,they are reported all the time.
Never said there was not,i meant the eastern shore boys dialects would definetly be regarded as Northern in the south,even with there similar dialects with some of there words,the overall dialect is still Mid-atlantic/northern alike.Thats all.
I think Atlanta, Tampa, Nashville, Jacksonville, Raleigh, Charlotte, Dallas, and Houston are legitimate cities! Even there the pace of life is different, its hard to describe but it just feels nicer. So I don't know what about the northeast corridor, LA, and SF that make people in these places especially rude and unfriendly.
Those places are too young and spread out to be even considered. Those cities that you mentioned above seem to carry more of the negative aspects(crime,traffic,sprawl,stepfordness,etc)and lack the positive ones(density,culture,originality,history,etc) of what makes a "city". They only feel nicer because these places cities are newer.
The northeast corridor and the west coast are like that because it's faster paced than the south and the midwest. When you always rushing you don't really have the time to be nice and friendly that's only optional
Those places are too young and spread out to be even considered. Those cities that you mentioned above seem to carry more of the negative aspects(crime,traffic,sprawl,stepfordness,etc)and lack the positive ones(density,culture,originality,history,etc) of what makes a "city". They only feel nicer because these places cities are newer.
The northeast corridor and the west coast are like that because it's faster paced than the south and the midwest. When you always rushing you don't really have the time to be nice and friendly that's only optional
The funny part is southerners say the same thing about DC/BMORE when they mention,snotty attitudes and rudeness, and etc,if i could count the times in my life through DC were someone originally from the south totally complained that it was just too fast and everyone was so rude or very anti social compared to the south.I said well thats the north for you,think DC/BMORE is bad with the attitudes,go to NYC,you will want to smack someone when your done lol.
MDisNorth, The IDEA site is real people with real accents, but the PURPOSE of the site is not to conduct a complete linguistic survey of each state but rather to provide a few authentic samples for stage actors to imitate.
Yes the two brothers accents are not what you would find in Virginia. But what you find in Virginia is not the same dialect you would find in North Carolina, which is not the same dialect you will find in the mountains of Tennesse, and so on and so forth. If you don't believe me go back to the IDEA site and check out the dialect samples from North Carolina. Check the speakers from Ocaocroke Island, the elderly speaker from Rocky Mount, and then the speakers from the mountains. These are three distinct dialects.
The point I am trying to make is that there are many distinct sub-dialects that make up what is considered "Southern" speech. The accents of Southern Maryland and the Eastern Shore are in this family.
Here is a map from Dr. William Labov, the leading expert on dialect in North America. He includes parts of Maryland in his defintion.
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lol
(save New Orleans)
