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Wanted to get some feedback and points of view on something. In your opinions, does Virginia overall have more in common with Georgia or New Jersey?
I was born, raised + lived 2/3 of my life in the northern NJ suburbs of NYC. Then transferred by ex employer & lived more than 5 years in Atlanta metro. And now an even longer stint in Hampton Roads/Tidewater region of VA which is Norfolk, Virginia Beach & surrounding.
If your barometer for Virginia is simply northern VA outside of DC then the answer would probably be New Jersey even though some comparisons could be made to the Atlanta area. I have also thought to myself that – in terms of overall flavor, environment, lifestyle, culture, etc … if you put GA and NJ into a blender the final result might come out something like VA.
I do know that the immediate area I am in now has some southern flavor and if you go inland away from the more heavily transplant laden areas of Hampton Roads, large areas are unquestionably southern. Even so, the idea that Virginia has lost it’s southerness or is not even really a southern state has been floated by more than a couple of people on these forums.
I say the vibe, look and day to day life in my current area is more akin overall to metro ATL than it is metro NYC where I grew up - as is the weather. But at the same time this area probably has more in common with NJ than it does much of deep south southern GA.
To be frank, most people on these forums have a very stereotyped view on what southern-ness is. In terms of states taking out DC and ignoring economic differences, the state I'd probably say feels the most like Virginia that it normally isn't compared to is Kentucky: Horses, cultivated hills, Richmond vs Louisville, wine vs bourbon, notable seasonality, etc. The smaller towns in KY that are well kept give a similar feel as well.
Comparing a suburban area to northern NJ is going to probably feel closer than comparing it to a rural area in any state, Georgia not being any different. It's probably best to compare the like areas of any state when doing a comparison. Take middle NJ, southern GA and western VA for comparing; then Atlanta suburbs, Philly/NYC suburbs and Richmond/Hampton Roads/Nova into comparison. If you're comparing Newark to Birmingham and the middle of the Adirondacks, then you'd say NJ is more similar to Alabama than New York state.
To be frank, most people on these forums have a very stereotyped view on what southern-ness is. In terms of states taking out DC and ignoring economic differences, the state I'd probably say feels the most like Virginia that it normally isn't compared to is Kentucky: Horses, cultivated hills, Richmond vs Louisville, wine vs bourbon, notable seasonality, etc. The smaller towns in KY that are well kept give a similar feel as well.
Comparing a suburban area to northern NJ is going to probably feel closer than comparing it to a rural area in any state, Georgia not being any different. It's probably best to compare the like areas of any state when doing a comparison. Take middle NJ, southern GA and western VA for comparing; then Atlanta suburbs, Philly/NYC suburbs and Richmond/Hampton Roads/Nova into comparison. If you're comparing Newark to Birmingham and the middle of the Adirondacks, then you'd say NJ is more similar to Alabama than New York state.
Great post, couldn't have written this any better.
Wanted to get some feedback and points of view on something. In your opinions, does Virginia overall have more in common with Georgia or New Jersey?
I was born, raised + lived 2/3 of my life in the northern NJ suburbs of NYC. Then transferred by ex employer & lived more than 5 years in Atlanta metro. And now an even longer stint in Hampton Roads/Tidewater region of VA which is Norfolk, Virginia Beach & surrounding.
If your barometer for Virginia is simply northern VA outside of DC then the answer would probably be New Jersey even though some comparisons could be made to the Atlanta area. I have also thought to myself that – in terms of overall flavor, environment, lifestyle, culture, etc … if you put GA and NJ into a blender the final result might come out something like VA.
I do know that the immediate area I am in now has some southern flavor and if you go inland away from the more heavily transplant laden areas of Hampton Roads, large areas are unquestionably southern. Even so, the idea that Virginia has lost it’s southerness or is not even really a southern state has been floated by more than a couple of people on these forums.
I say the vibe, look and day to day life in my current area is more akin overall to metro ATL than it is metro NYC where I grew up - as is the weather. But at the same time this area probably has more in common with NJ than it does much of deep south southern GA.
Any thoughts?
Too broad, but to be honest it depends on what part, Urban, rural, suburban, etc. To be honest Virgina feels more in common with Kentucky especially Louisville and Richmond area than anything Georgia. May be Northern Virgina suburbs around DC for some comparison to say suburban Atlanta but other than that i don't see it for GA, just doesn't feel the same. Jersey,,, Ummm depends on what part as well, may be south Jersey, but kinda broad as well..
This is a very good and interesting thread. I chose GA because NOVA and the Northern Atlanta Suburbs feel nearly identical. Also, both states have an abundance of rural areas outside of its population centers. The rural areas are southern in nature. The coastal areas of both states are very historic. The traditional foods are similar in Virginia and Georgia.
This is a very good and interesting thread. I chose GA because NOVA and the Northern Atlanta Suburbs feel nearly identical. Also, both states have an abundance of rural areas outside of its population centers. The rural areas are southern in nature. The coastal areas of both states are very historic. The traditional foods are similar in Virginia and Georgia.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
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Originally Posted by oobanks
Too broad, but to be honest it depends on what part, Urban, rural, suburban, etc. To be honest Virgina feels more in common with Kentucky especially Louisville and Richmond area than anything Georgia. May be Northern Virgina suburbs around DC for some comparison to say suburban Atlanta but other than that i don't see it for GA, just doesn't feel the same. Jersey,,, Ummm depends on what part as well, may be south Jersey, but kinda broad as well..
I would also throw in eastern Tennessee and even some areas on the outskirts of Nashville feel like Chesterfield outside of Richmond. Virginia is quite literally the southern gateway, and it really does vary from which part of the state you are in.
I honestly would say that VA is more Pennsylvania than it is NJ asides from both having a shoreline. The terrain, topography, and towns along the I-81 corridor ranging through that stretch are all closely related and very similar in VA/PA. The tidewater area of VA leans more coastal North Carolina than anywhere on coastal GA. As mentioned, the mountain region is more WV/KY Appalachia like. Then that just leaves you with the NOVA suburbs which I think you have two sides to (inner Beltway more NNJ like in areas closer to DC), (outer beltway more sunbelt GA like).
Virginia is a mix of a lot, but as southern as VA is, it's still a mid-Atlantic state and feels 0% "Deep South". Georgia is a Deep South state through and through that, feels like a completely different part of the country with SC, AL, northern FL. VA aligns with much of it's most immediate surroundings that you'll find in a 200-300 mile radius from the center of the state.
Virginia's suburban DC areas are similar to portions of NJ, in terms of progressiveness and built out infrastructure.
The rest of the state is mostly comparable to the southeast in general. Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, etc.
Southern Virginia and especially southwest Virginia, are red, conservative stronghold "Bible belt" areas. While the DC suburbs and Norfolk/Va Beach and Richmond, are more blue and liberal.
I am going with Georgia, by a pretty large margin. NOVA and the Atlanta 'burbs have a lot in common and that's the one part of VA I could see skewing toward NJ a little bit. But NOVA is still quite a bit more like Metro Atlanta than suburban NJ in my opinion.
The rest isn't as close. My father grew up in VA Beach and lives on the Eastern Shore in the Cape Charles area. Physically, the Eastern Shore reminds me a bit of Low Country with expansive marshes, a seemingly endless string of creeks/streams/rivers, undeveloped barrier islands and expansive, remote sandy beaches. The Eastern Shore has more open/agricultural land whereas Low Country is a bit more forested with some larger cities, but there are similarities there that simply don't exist between VA and NJ. VA Beach's boardwalk area has a good deal in common with any other boardwalk/beach town and NJ has quite a few of those. But that's a small chunk of VA Beach and the rest of it doesn't really look/feel like much in New Jersey.
Similar to the coast, the mountain regions of both GA and VA have many similarities - Both have portions of the Blue Ridge Mountains. And while there are differences culturally, there's more commonality between the two than anything you'd find in NJ. All three of these states have portions of the Piedmont, but it's a much larger portion of VA and GA than it is NJ. And again, there's much more cultural overlap between VA and GA.
Finally, while NJ has more agricultural land than most people might imagine, it doesn't have it on nearly the same scale as both VA and GA which have pretty large swaths of "farm country." And like the areas above, there's far more cultural overlap between agricultural VA and GA than there is between VA and NJ.
Georgia definitely. VA and GA are both Southern states.
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