What major city has the most people inaccurately claiming to reside there? (NYC, metro)
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The entire "its easier just to say the city" logic premise assumes that people one encounters are unaware of distinctions between cities and their suburbs. Yes, its extremely unlikely that someone outside of the region has heard of Lorton-but claiming D.C would be a deliberate misdirection from a suburb into a principal city, to say nothing of the fact its located in a different state.
I'll use Chicago as a real quick example.
I have never physically set foot in the city of Chicago.
Yet, off the top of my head, I can name-Chicago, Cook County, Aurora, Joliet, Naperville, Franklin Park, Evanston just from living life. On top of that, people in that region are provided with the term "Chicagoland" to describe areas out of the city!
Zero reason to say Chicago if you don't live there.
I'm not trying to explain to people where exactly a place is from or what is there to people that do not know the area. It is way easier to just say the primary city to people and be done with it. For another example with Chicago, Yeah Hillside is not in Chicago but nobody cares or knows where Hillside is and what is in Hillside.
The elephant in the room is race and white flight especially in the Eastern half of the U.S.. White flight suburbanites disliked what their cities turned into but also maintain an emotional link to the city's past, so they may claim the city in many ways except they will also talk smack about the city proper and how trashy it is etc. Many locals in the city - especially blacks - resent the fact that those folks left and try their utmost to live in a separate jurisdiction while still claiming the city as their own when it suits them. So there's almost a "it's our city now, suckers' element.
It's an issue that cuts both ways though because the history and legacy of the city does in many ways continue on in those suburban folks. It's just that the issues between that legacy and the other legacy have never been resolved.
Great post and really hits the nail on the head! The same suburbanites who will crap all over Boston Public Schools or call the city "dangerous" and refuse to ride public transit in the city because it's "scary" are the ones who will jump at a chance while travelling to be all "heehee I'm from Boston. I own a purebred Boston terrier named Wally and I pahk my cah in the hahvid yahd. Isn't that so fun and quirky?".
I see it pretty often, and while frustrating, you usually have to just grin and bear it because A) people from outside MA probably don't know the area and its politics enough to know why that's problematic and B) the suburbanites themselves aren't always fully aware of the implications around using the city's name for pride/recognition while also thinking of themselves as above it for having grown up in Winchester or Lexington.
The only people I ever see get upset about this are the ones that need to justify to themselves why they pay extra to live within an invisible boundary.
Nobody cares if you live within city limits or not.
Not LA. I always hear "I'm from Orange County" or "from the Inland Empire" or "from Irvine", even if people from the county might just give the city.
I've heard people from Kankakee County (in Chicago's CSA) and even Madison, WI (not in the CSA) claim to be from Chicago. I'm not sure how I feel about it. On the one hand, it shows a lot of people think the city is worth claiming, but on the other, it really illustrates how little-known any of our satellite cities or suburbs are on a national scale.
Madison, fregging really?!? Madison isn't unknown nationally(where I don't see a need to say you're near Chicago, and ffs you're closer to Milwaukee!), whereas OTOH I can understand someone from Kankakee doing that. Since it's only 1 county away from Cook County, and Kankakee(& County) isn't as known nationally.
As an Angelino I think it's fine for people from all over to claim LA. LA is really a huge polycentric urban area. Just because Santa Monica isn't officially LA, it's still LA. Hell even the Angels changed their name to LA so I don't see why we can't just claim everybody around here. It's also why on subs like this we talk about what is the "real" population of LA. Is Riverside LA? My opinion - yes. They are just a far-flung suburb and everyone knows it.
Yeah, I was born in the city of Orange, CA and raised in Bellflower, a suburb in LA county. I've always claimed to be from LA.
Boston and Atlanta. Lived in both, and I still have friends in Atlanta from as far south as McDonough and north in Suawanee still claiming to live in the ATL. Growing up in New England was similar. People from as far west as Worcester and north of 485 would often claim to be from Boston, especially when out of town.
Boston and Atlanta. Lived in both, and I still have friends in Atlanta from as far south as McDonough and north in Suawanee still claiming to live in the ATL. Growing up in New England was similar. People from as far west as Worcester and north of 485 would often claim to be from Boston, especially when out of town.
This is interesting and calls back to the OP.
Over 40 miles west, but from what I understand sitting on the edge of the Boston CSA. This is really pushing the limits of the "its just easier to say the main city and no one cares anyway" orthodoxy prevailing in this thread.
Yes, absolutely bothers me. You’re misrepresenting my city to others and no-I don’t share bonds about the city with you.
Why are people coming on to the thread about this and then disputing the core premise of the thread with these types of questions?
You’re from Massachusetts. You are not from Boston. Or do people “not no where Massachusetts is”? What does that even mean by the way? Like a mental geographic map or?…
Bless your heart, lol.
I hope you don't throw rocks at the Boston College sign whenever you happen to pass the campus out in Chestnut Hill.
The only people I ever see get upset about this are the ones that need to justify to themselves why they pay extra to live within an invisible boundary.
Nobody cares if you live within city limits or not.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Good Red Road
I’ve heard it called Zip Code Elitism, I’ve also heard Viagra helps.
"Late reply" and all, take Chicago for example. Does the average place really cost more in the city vs. the suburbs within the metro area?
I can tell you with certainty it is not considered a flex to live in the city of Pittsburgh within the metro area.
Cause I’m pretty sure the answer is like St Louis at least percentage wise
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