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You see, Texas and Oklahoma are the least southern of the southern states; Maryland and Delaware are a close second, but as $mk8795 pointed out, there is still lots of southern culture all over those two Mid-Atlantic areas outside the major metros like Baltimore or Dover. Texas and Oklahoma have entire regions in their states devoid of Southern culture.
You see, Texas and Oklahoma are the least southern of the southern states; Maryland and Delaware are a close second, but as $mk8795 pointed out, there is still lots of southern culture all over those two Mid-Atlantic areas outside the major metros like Baltimore or Dover. Texas and Oklahoma have entire regions in their states devoid of Southern culture.
Clearly you've never been here in the South-Central region (OK/TX/AR). If you think that Maryland/Delware (DELAWARE!) are more Southern than Texas and Oklahoma, you either a) have a misunderstanding of what Southern culture truly is, or b) you're just a straight-up liar. I don't like calling people liars, so I'm hoping it's Option A.
No hard feelings YnOhTnA, when you're just flat wrong, and you continually assert that which is wrong-headed, at some point you will not be taken seriously. I think you're there YnOhTnA. I really hope you're not $mkGuy posing under this username.
1) They do not talk like Southerners.
2) They are not predominately Southern Baptist
3) They do not eat grits, rice, collard greens or other food typically associated with the South. (Delaware does eat a lot of fried chicken and blue crabs, though).
4) Sweet tea is not common is Delaware, and I don't believe pecan pie is a big thing.
5) Despite having essentially one major university (two if you count the HBCU), Delaware does not have a huge college football culture. Even during the season the team made the Div. IAA championship, fans would routinely leave at halftime.
But no one takes that guy seriously.
I couldn't honestly care less which region Delaware is in, but let me help you a little:
1. Southerners talk in a wide variety of accents...there is no one way that we talk, even within one state.
2. Southern Baptist is the largest denomination in the South, but there are many areas where it is not predominate.
3. We don't sit around eating fried chicken, grits, and collards...we have the internet for recipes and wide array of restaurants.
4. Pecan pie is popular all over the country, as pecans are available everywhere.
5. Poor support for your university sports by locals is not evidence of being non-southern. Example: Duke has poor fan support, Penn State has huge fan support.
Pointing out historic southern stereotypes is not a valid way to prove that Delaware (or any other state) is not southern.
5
Florida followed closely by Virginia. As a Virginian, I refer to my state as a Mid-Atlantic state. It sort of feels like it's a southern state in the middle of transiting into a northern one.
Sans Maryland/Delaware, obviously, the states in bold are the answer to the original inquiry.
While that may be true, keep in mind that Delaware/Maryland/DC/NoVA are all geographically and economically affiliated with the Northeast, so it's much easier to consider them culturally northern than Atlanta. Likewise, if Kentucky were to receive a massive influx of transplants, it would be easier to consider northern than if Alabama did. I wouldn't call South Florida northern at all, just not really "southern".
So because these places are near the regional border and not as traditionally southern as other areas in the South they are somehow lost as part of our region? I don't think so...DE/MD/NOVA are also affiliated with the South. NOVA is part of southern state and therefore is included as part of the South. End of story. Northern transplants don't subtract an area from our region...it they did, Raleigh would be considered part of the Northeast much as North Atlanta would.
Same with South Florida - it may not be as traditionally southern as some other areas but you can easily find traditional southern culture in South Florida. What other region has people do adamantly claiming to be part of another like the South? It's mostly some antiquated negative perception that people still associate with us so they would argue until the end of time that they aren't southern.
You can have MD and DE...I really don't care and they are very mixed culturally. But you can't just break off part of VA, which is a solid southern state, and claim that it isn't southern anymore. The South has changed and modernized throughout the region, so what is "southern" has evolved over the past few decades.
Clearly you've never been here in the South-Central region (OK/TX/AR). If you think that Maryland/Delware (DELAWARE!) are more Southern than Texas and Oklahoma, you either a) have a misunderstanding of what Southern culture truly is, or b) you're just a straight-up liar. I don't like calling people liars, so I'm hoping it's Option A.
No hard feelings YnOhTnA, when you're just flat wrong, and you continually assert that which is wrong-headed, at some point you will not be taken seriously. I think you're there YnOhTnA. I really hope you're not $mkGuy posing under this username.
Good luck.
I have been to Texas and Oklahoma, in all areas of those states, in fact. Those states have ENTIRE swaths of land without a single HINT of Southern Culture; and the areas that do have Southern Culture have said culture mixed in with a western influence and/or hispanic influence. (except in deep East Texas, and Southeast Oklahoma.)
Meanwhile, Maryland and Delaware, outside major cities, have areas of southern culture found throughout both states.
I couldn't honestly care less which region Delaware is in, but let me help you a little:
1. Southerners talk in a wide variety of accents...there is no one way that we talk, even within one state.
2. Southern Baptist is the largest denomination in the South, but there are many areas where it is not predominate.
3. We don't sit around eating fried chicken, grits, and collards...we have the internet for recipes and wide array of restaurants.
4. Pecan pie is popular all over the country, as pecans are available everywhere.
5. Poor support for your university sports by locals is not evidence of being non-southern. Example: Duke has poor fan support, Penn State has huge fan support.
Pointing out historic southern stereotypes is not a valid way to prove that Delaware (or any other state) is not southern.
5
My post is tied strongly to the context it was in. Statement 1 was here are things that are Southern that Texas and Oklahoma have. Statement 2 was all the census-designated Southern states have those features. I was merely pointing out that
1. I am aware that Southerners talk with a wide variety of accents. But those accents are for the most part absent in Delaware. Most of the population speaks with a variation of the Mid-Atlantic dialect and many of them speak in a Philadelphia accent.
2. Sure. But here's the largest protestant religion in each county in the United States. Here are the Baptists as a percentage of the population. If that's a characteristic of Southern states--as was posited in the post I was replying to--then Delaware simply lacks that characteristic.
3. You're setting up strawmen. Southern food is not common in Delaware. That was the point I was making. It's not absent. I'm sure you can go to Popeyes if you really want Southern food. I'd prefer to frequent the Amish markets.
4. Sure. But Delaware isn't particularly associated with pecan pie. Which was my point.
5. That's true. I was replying to the original comment. People tend to be bigger fans of college football in Ohio as well. Map.
Someone needs to make a good argument to me why Delaware is Southern because I just don't buy it.
My post is tied strongly to the context it was in. Statement 1 was here are things that are Southern that Texas and Oklahoma have. Statement 2 was all the census-designated Southern states have those features. I was merely pointing out that
1. I am aware that Southerners talk with a wide variety of accents. But those accents are for the most part absent in Delaware. Most of the population speaks with a variation of the Mid-Atlantic dialect and many of them speak in a Philadelphia accent.
2. Sure. But here's the largest protestant religion in each county in the United States. Here are the Baptists as a percentage of the population. If that's a characteristic of Southern states--as was posited in the post I was replying to--then Delaware simply lacks that characteristic.
3. You're setting up strawmen. Southern food is not common in Delaware. That was the point I was making. It's not absent. I'm sure you can go to Popeyes if you really want Southern food. I'd prefer to frequent the Amish markets.
4. Sure. But Delaware isn't particularly associated with pecan pie. Which was my point.
5. That's true. I was replying to the original comment. People tend to be bigger fans of college football in Ohio as well. Map.
Someone needs to make a good argument to me why Delaware is Southern because I just don't buy it.
I apologize if your post was in response to someone else, but on it's own it just doesn't hold up with all of the typical stereotypes. Too many people envision our culture as historic southern culture rather than modern southern culture, and your comment just brings up many of the stereotypes.
I have no opinion about Delaware, but having been to the beach there it wasn't strikingly different than any beach I've been to across the South.
Location: Appalachian New York, Formerly Louisiana
4,409 posts, read 6,540,027 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thenewtexan
Your perception of a southern accent is different from others. Not everyone lives in Louisiana. My vote goes to Maryland, and most people on this thread agree. It's below the M-D line, but their twangs (yes, there are southern twangs there) are not as thick as LA, or AL. Sure, there are twangs in other states, IN, etc, but geographically it is not the south. Yes, you have "hick culture" in places like Maine, but guess what? It's not in the south. There is more than one way to interpret southern depending on where you're from. That's what makes these discussions fun and interesting. Lighten up already.
I don't think you understood me at all.
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) are more Southern than Texas and Oklahoma, you either a) have a misunderstanding of what Southern culture truly is, or b) you're just a straight-up liar. I don't like calling people liars, so I'm hoping it's Option A. 
