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I heard a S. Jerseyan say "phune" (or foon) today at work. It's hard for me to even say it like her. There's an O in there but nothing like anyone was taught in school. Friggin' weirdos.
I heard a S. Jerseyan say "phune" (or foon) today at work. It's hard for me to even say it like her. There's an O in there but nothing like anyone was taught in school. Friggin' weirdos.
Everyone I know that talks like that is from Philly. It certainly does sound different. There's an extra "a" in Acme, too..."Ac.a.me." I think if you spell phone like "phewn" that might sound about right, that is if you're trying to say phone. But, that doesn't make anyone a weirdo. I'm weird and I don't talk like that.
Everyone I know that talks like that is from Philly. It certainly does sound different. There's an extra "a" in Acme, too..."Ac.a.me." I think if you spell phone like "phewn" that might sound about right, that is if you're trying to say phone. But, that doesn't make anyone a weirdo. I'm weird and I don't talk like that.
I don't say anything like that, but I do say "wooder" instead of water. I never get called on it unless I'm out of state, lol. I consider myself a Jersian (is that a word?), but definitely root for Philly teams. When I grew up, before cable (but well after dinosaurs) all we got were Philly radio and TV stations, so those were the games we saw, and the news we saw, and Philly stadiums were much closer than north Jersey.
I do think there is a bit of a rivalry, that goes beyond Giants vs. Eagles...I as a south Jersian feel "left out" a lot of the time, like a stepchild. Buy New Jersey magazine or look through it in the Dr's office, and I'm getting mad because it's all about NORTH Jersey, so I do get a "Hey, what about US, don't WEEE count?!!" kind of feeling. And also when I encounter out of staters, and they say rudely "Why would NEW JERSEY be the GARDEN state?" or "Do you know Tony Soprano?" and I say South Jersey is different (gosh darn it!)
I'm wondering if most Jerseyite still consider themselves from Jersey first, or if they tend to identify more with being from the NY area or the Philly area.
I'm from North Jersey. New York has nothing to do with it.
Everyone I know that talks like that is from Philly. It certainly does sound different. There's an extra "a" in Acme, too..."Ac.a.me." I think if you spell phone like "phewn" that might sound about right, that is if you're trying to say phone. But, that doesn't make anyone a weirdo. I'm weird and I don't talk like that.
I say dawg & cawfee which was humorous to an old co-worker from Michigan. She said "dag" and "ruff" for roof.
Also it's a hero & never a hoagie in North Jersey and the stairs in front of your house is the stoop.
It's Taylor ham, egg & cheese on a roll NOT "pork roll." Not specific enough.
The whole New York City/Philadelphia thing is just a pretty simple way to split NJ into the two regions it is, whether we have a rivalry with one another for not. It is true that half the state is NYC influenced and the other half Philly influenced, but this is mostly by media market and census metro region breakdown. Other than that, we are just New Jersey.
As a side note, I find it funny that NJ is always touted as the state without an identity, the state without a major city when there are SO many states without a major or even big city. Even our close neighbor also in the NYC metro region, Connecticut, doesn't have a major city. Nor does Vermont, South Carolina, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and many more. It's safe to say most states don't have a major city yet NJ is always called out for it.
I agree we're just NJ. North/South I only hear when perhaps talking to another NJ'ian, or for geographic reference. I remember the whole 'NJ doesn't have an identity' line, but I haven't heard it much in recent years. And I think that has a lot to do with media exposure and pop culture/movies (good and bad). A lot of haters out there though, that's for sure.
We definitely get knocked for not having a major city but I do get surprised in my travels about how many people actually do know about our cities.
Last edited by 66nexus; 10-07-2013 at 07:35 PM..
Reason: grammar
I agree we're just NJ. North/South I only hear when perhaps talking to another NJ'ian, or for geographic reference. I remember the whole 'NJ doesn't have an identity' line, but I haven't heard it much in recent years. And I think that has a lot to do with media exposure and pop culture/movies (good and bad). A lot of haters out there though, that's for sure.
We definitely get knocked for not having a major city but I do get surprised in my travels about how many people actually do know about our cities.
Yes, I was on a thread I came across a few days ago that discussed up and coming/improved cities across the country, but smaller cities. Someone from out of the area mentioned that last time he/she was in NYC, he/she was impressed by the size of Jersey City's skyline across the river. It really has improved in the last 10 years and I'm also surprised that that person knew what is across the Hudson River from Manhattan is New Jersey, even more specifically, is able to name the cities and identify them. Most people probably know it's NJ, I'll give them that (unless they're from out of the country and have no clue how states in the US are arranged… but then again some Americans have no clue which state is which and think that NYC is its own state so who even knows ) but most people from out of the area likely wouldn't know which city is which in NJ. I do think Jersey City and Newark, though, are pretty widely known and I think Hoboken, too, to an extent. It's good for us.
There is a big difference as far as I'm concerned. South Jersey, at least the tri-county area outside Philly, feels very different from the rest of the state. I say this as someone who grew up in the nortwestern corner of the state, has family in Bergen County, dates a girl from Newark, did undergrad in Mercer County, and now spends a lot of time in South Jersey for grad school.
History: During colonial times the NJ was divided into two separate entities, East and West Jersey, with different capitals (Perth Amboy, Burlington, respectively). East Jersey was heavily influenced by NY merchants, but was settled by a mix of Dutch, Germans, and New Englanders. West Jersey was home mostly to Quakers from PA. The dividing line between the two, roughly today's Burlington county line, is the best demarcation point for modern-day North and South Jersey.
Geography/environment: South Jersey is very flat compared to North Jersey. Below Trenton there are almost no big ridgelines. Nothing comparable to the Watchungs in western Essex and Union counties or some of the hilly areas of Bergen, to say nothing of the real highlands in western Morris or Sussex (home for me). South Jersey seems less forested as well in the populated areas. Of course it is home to the huge tracts of pine barrens, but there's a lot less intermingled small forests and hiking areas that you might see in North Jersey.
Infrastructure/housing: There's a much greater diversity in North Jersey. North Jersey is of course more urban, with cities including Newark, Jersey City, and Paterson, as well as the built-up areas surrounding these cities such as Montclair, Harrison, the Oranges, etc. Also, North Jersey has many more small towns dating from the wave of 19th-century railroad suburbanization. Wealthy downtowns such as Morristown, Westfield, Summit, South Orange, Maplewood Village, and Ridgewood or almost wholly absent from South Jersey. Even tiny downtowns like the ones in Chester, Denville, Netcong, Newton, Cranford, or Somerville are tough to find below Trenton. What towns do exist in SJ are also flatter, rarely do you ever see a building over 2 stories even in the more bustling towns. Finally, SJ has almost no rail network, compared to the large number or trains running in NNJ.
Culture: Obviously there are the different TV markets and concomitant sports fandoms. There's also Wawa. Water (wooder) ice vs italian ice, hoagies vs subs. SJ is a bit more conservative and family oriented I think. Certainly the Quaker influence makes for a plethora of dry towns which you almost never see in NNJ. The demographics are different too. You don't see the myriad of Indian, Asian, and Hispanic immigrants you might come across in certain parts of NNJ. On the other hand, you see a much higher percentage of African-Americans in suburban and middle class areas, not just in cities, something one notices throughout the Delaware Valley. There are fewer young people in SJ, as there's no real hip downtown to compare to Hoboken or Jersey City. Most people looking for that lifestlye just live in Philly.
Economics: There are a few wealthy towns, SJ is poorer (and cheaper) than NNJ. Even the most expensive towns in SJ have median incomes around 90,000 (at least as of the 2000 census), about 50% less than expensive towns in NNJ. The emergence of the "wealth belt" is confined to NNJ, the 7 counties stretching from Monmouth up through Somerset and Morris and over to Bergen.
Go over to the Philadelphia suburbs subforum. You'll see the difference. I'm not sure how much of a rivalry there is though, it's more mutual ignorance. I do have class with a girl from Cherry Hill who called NNJ "a totally different state," and I know some NNJ folks who look at SJ as backwards and boring. If there is a rivalry though, I think it's most NNJ ignorance and SJ resentment. Remember, that half of the state did have a secession vote in the early 90s...
NNJ has QuickChek.
SNJ has Wawa.
Mostly the same thing.
And while there are dry towns in SNJ, there's also the Brigantine/Atlantic City types who have alcohol 24/7.
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But, that doesn't make anyone a weirdo. I'm weird and I don't talk like that.
) but most people from out of the area likely wouldn't know which city is which in NJ. I do think Jersey City and Newark, though, are pretty widely known and I think Hoboken, too, to an extent. It's good for us.
