Why do Texans deny their southern heritage? (Houston, San Antonio: fit in, houses)

[azriverfan.]

I can't believe the thread below? Why is this even a question? Texas is most definitely a southern state. Texans are ashamed of their southern heritage and try to distance themselves from their obvious southern roots by saying they are their own thing. It's pretty obvious Texas is southern. For godsake, they were a confederate state during the civil war. Everyone clearly has an accent. Most people are Southern Baptists and have conservative Christian views. Joel Osteen and other famous evangelists are from Texas. Country music has a huge founding base in Texas. The KKK consider Texas one of it's strongest base of operations. What more evidence do you want?

A Texan might respond and say "southern" applies to states like Lousiana, Mississippi, Alabama etc. but that response is weak. There are degrees to everything. Yes, Texas isn't as southern as those states but anyone who travels to Texas can clear observe there is a strong southern heritage there. And when Texans say they don't have an accent, that is hilarious. I'm from California who spent some time in Texas and all of you clearly have accents. Again, it's not as strong as someone from a deep southern state but you clearly have a drawl and it's easily heard. Why are you so ashamed of your southern heritage? You guys are not California and there is nothing western about you.

[j96g]

I live in South Texas and we have SouthWestern Bell telephone. What does that mean? I'm confused now.

[love roses]

I'm Texan and I always thought of Texas as Southern. It took me a while to figure out why people refer to it as Southwestern in flavor. I don't think that applies to the whole state though, only West texas. I grew up on the Texas gulf coast, so I'm pretty familiar with the texas that you are talking about....Big Oak trees dripping with spanish moss, plantation houses, bayous, alligators, beaches and also some cajun thrown in...etoufee, shrimp creole, etc..(referring to food). Texas doesn't really fit into one neat little category though. Different regions of the state have entirely different feels, so that's why you hear so many different views on it.

[Macbeth2003]

Originally Posted by love roses

Texas doesn't really fit into one neat little category though. Different regions of the state have entirely different feels, so that's why you hear so many different views on it.

Absolutely spot on.

Also in the big cities the amount of non native Texans is a huge cultural influence. I was talking about this recently with a group of friends at a party. OVer twenty of us there and two were native Texans.

[spursfan]

Go to El Paso and find me any trace of the South. To beat the dead (and mangled) horse again, different parts of Texas have a different feel. It's a big state. And I really don't know that many people with an accent.

[atxcio]

Originally Posted by azriverfan.

A Texan might respond and say "southern" applies to states like Lousiana, Mississippi, Alabama etc. but that response is weak. There are degrees to everything. Yes, Texas isn't as southern as those states but anyone who travels to Texas can clear observe there is a strong southern heritage there.

You clearly haven't traveled through much of Texas. And yes, "southern" does really apply more to Lousiana, Mississippi, Alabama but also to Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. And it's not a weak response, it's just the facts.

The southern influence is here though, probably just behind the Spanish (Mexico) and Western US influence. Why deny any of them? Southern culture is just generally an easy target for the rest of the US, as backwards or whatever... just like Mexican culture is an easy target. Both are often pointed out as "drawbacks" of Texas, but hey, it's all just history.

[bresilhac]

No, for the 10,000th time not everyone in Texas has an idiotic sounding southern accent. I was born and raised in San Antonio and I've been told that I have no discernible southern accent whatsoever. If anything I've a got bit of a Northeastern accent that comes from living in Northern Virginia for 13 years. Take a ride around the San Antonio area sometime.

You'll find few if any indications that you're in a stereotypically southern city. What you will find is a city with a heavy Mexican/Spanish influence most of all. This is more Southwestern than anything else. While it is true that much of Texas is certainly southern influenced, especially East Texas, that is not the way it is around here.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by spursfan

Go to El Paso and find me any trace of the South. To beat the dead (and mangled) horse again, different parts of Texas have a different feel. It's a big state. And I really don't know that many people with an accent.

How would you know if you have an accent if you are from Texas and are surrounded by Texans? Texans generally don't think they have an accent but they clearly do. It's not obvious but it's clearly there. Jessica Simpson and Matthew Mcconaughey supposedly don't have accents either according to you guys but it's obvious to us. I'm from Cali and I can hear the accent even among people in Austin, Houston and San Antonio. You guys say ya'll instead of "all of you" as if its normal. I agree El Paso is not southern but the majority of Texas is not like El Paso. It's mostly southern

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by bresilhac

No, for the 10,000th time not everyone in Texas has an idiotic sounding southern accent. I was born and raised in San Antonio and I've been told that I have no discernible southern accent whatsoever. If anything I've a got bit of a Northeastern accent that comes from living in Northern Virginia for 13 years. Take a ride around the San Antonio area sometime.

You'll find few if any indications that you're in a stereotypically southern city. What you will find is a city with a heavy Mexican/Spanish influence most of all. This is more Southwestern than anything else. While it is true that much of Texas is certainly southern influenced, especially East Texas, that is not the way it is around here.

You are generalizing as well. Mexican/Spanish is found in Arizona and California. You guys have Tejano which is mix of Mexican and Cowboy/Southern so the Southern aspect is still a big part of San Antonio. A lot of the Mexican-Americans in San Antonio wear cowboy hats and boots. San Antonio has a lot of rodeos and cowboys. The funny thing is, you can hear a slight southern accent when Tim Duncan speaks. He never had that when he first joined your team.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by atxcio

You clearly haven't traveled through much of Texas. And yes, "southern" does really apply more to Lousiana, Mississippi, Alabama but also to Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. And it's not a weak response, it's just the facts.

You don't know me. I've spent a lot of time in Texas. It's just your way of not wanting to be associated with the south when you guys are clearly southern. It just suprises me because I'm originally from California and everyone in Arizona and California think of Texas as being southern. Likewise, Texans don't want to be thought of as being southern. I think you guys should embrace your heritage. It's what makes you unique. You guys are clearly not west or west coast. If you guys are not southern then Phoenix is west coast