Why is the Mid-Atlantic region lumped in with the N.E.? (public schools, university)

[KodeBlue]

Originally Posted by kidphilly

I mostly (actually in total) agree, growing up I always thought I lived in the Mid Atlantic and NJ to me was always kind of the center of it, anything below MD seems a stretch to me. I mean it was tauht as a fact I was in the Mid Atlantic and reading here sometime it would seem that PA and NJ are not part of it, always confused me as I thought this was basically MA ground zero

I thik I always thought NY/NJ/PA - The Mid Atlantic was the lower part of the North East with New England to the North but maybe its just me

Growing up I thought the Mid-Atlantic was just the Baltimore and DC metros. Most of the people I know have NEVER consider MD was southern state. Unheard of to most Marylanders.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by KodeBlue

Growing up I thought the Mid-Atlantic was just the Baltimore and DC metros. Most of the people I know have NEVER consider MD was southern state. Unheard of to most Marylanders.

MOST Marylanders? I wouldn't go that far, especially natives. Although many don't consider DC/Maryland to be the South today, the natives of that region that I know are well aware of its historic designation.

[Deluusions]

Originally Posted by spencer114

Tidewater has been considered Mid-Atlantic for decades, probably long before NoVa ever was.

That is such a big stretch but whatever helps you sleep at night.

[floridanative10]

Originally Posted by KodeBlue

Growing up I thought the Mid-Atlantic was just the Baltimore and DC metros. Most of the people I know have NEVER consider MD was southern state. Unheard of to most Marylanders.

Baltimore city and the many of the DC suburbs are very different from the majority of Maryland. Enormously different

wikimedia commons photo

[Shakeesha]

Originally Posted by rvabread22

Hi! I was just wondering. The Mid-Atlantic states are considered a "subregion of the Northeast- as in "Northeast and Mid-Atlantic" But they are not considered a sub region of the Southeast states.

Hi! I think because we tend to have a tendency to define regions from a top down, east west manner. That also plays into the constant condemnation that having "any" southern influence is almost always seen as a negative thing, which it is not.

But I find this is a problem- especially for Virginia which is the Southern end of the Mid Atlantic. And our culture is undeniably Southern.

That could mean many broad definitions of the term southern. I don't think anyone would equate the southernness of Virginia to Mississippi.

I live in Central Virginia and we have more in common with people in GA and TN than we do people from Boston or NYC, or even Baltimore!

I doubt that is true. However, you may be confusing/conflating the culture of Appalachia, with being the typical traits of the South, which is incorrect. East Tennessee, North/Northeast Georgia, Central and Southwestern Virginia are rather different from the other parts of their respective states, given the Appalachian influence. In addition, another underlying perception bias might include rural vs. urban.

People from the Northeast have accents and drink unsweet tea.

That is less of a defining point of north vs. south, as you can get both sweet and unsweet tea in many restaurants across the United States, even New York.

Shouldn't there be a new sub region of the U.S or "Upper South"- for those that live South of D.C. but not in the Deep South?

Yes! It would help tremendously if there were a more solid designation of the Upper South, as many people that have never been to the region believe the South is entirely the same. Of course there are always historical markers such as slavery, confederacy, accents etc. that give the South its stereotypical definitions. However, sub regions have their own distinctive characteristics as well that should be better defined.

Even far as to say- the Mid Atlantic states are not really like the Northeast. I have been to the Northeast and its like a different world to me. Also, if Virginia is considered Mid-Atlantic, then why is Kentucky not considered "Midwest'- when it is directly across from Virginia?

Border states have always been confusing territory. Having traveled extensively across the great state of Kentucky, I will say that things start to change around Louisville and Northern Kentucky, Basically the I-71 spine. Accents, development patterns/architecture, and culture are increasingly Midwestern (IMO), but the census does not define it as such. Paducah and Evansville (Owensboro/Henderson) are more like Southern Missouri/Illinois, Bowling Green could easily be a suburb of Nashville, and Lexington has the Appalachian influences etc. Most would firmly agree, however, that Kentucky is a Southern state.

What do y'all think?[/quote]

[KodeBlue]

Originally Posted by newbern100

Baltimore city and the many of the DC suburbs are very different from the majority of Maryland. Enormously different

wikimedia commons photo

This doesn't indicate what Marylanders think when it comes to being northern or southern, but people just don't like O'Malley. There are particular segments of the population that is gonna vote Democrat regardless of who's running. But most of the Marylanders that I've ever asked (people from all over the state not just Baltimore and DC metros) have said MD isn't southern, and that is regardless of party affiliations.

[Kbank007]

I suspect that the original poster is Vasinger (the poster who would always make comments regarding how Richmond was more southern than Atlanta). Lol

[Dyadic]

Originally Posted by KodeBlue

This doesn't indicate what Marylanders think when it comes to being northern or southern, but people just don't like O'Malley. There are particular segments of the population that is gonna vote Democrat regardless of who's running. But most of the Marylanders that I've ever asked (people from all over the state not just Baltimore and DC metros) have said MD isn't southern, and that is regardless of party affiliations.

A lot of large people don't think they're fat either. You can visit historic plantations use during slavery in both Maryland and Virginia which is something you can do in New Jersey, New York or Pennsylvania.

[CookieSkoon]

Originally Posted by rvabread22

You're trying to make Richmond seem less southern than it is. I never said we were like the Deep South. But me personally- I would feel more "at home' with someone from Georgia, The Carolinas, etc. More in common with those people than I would a Yankee from NJ. Regardless of geographical differences. And unsweet tea with a side of sugar packets? Yikes!

I could take you to some places in upstate NY that you'd feel at home in! Guarantee it.

A friend of mine from Virginia, Chesapeake to be exact, came up here with me back in 2008. He was pretty shocked at how country NY could be.

[qworldorder]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

What's your basis for saying such? Kentucky is still considered a Southern state (albeit with some Midwestern influences) even though it never seceded. Also many West Virginians consider their state essentially Southern.

You're right. I meant to say that any state that was in the Confederacy is unequivocally and irreversibly Southern (Virginia, most notably). The Border States are a bit more confusing, though I think only Kentucky is clearly Southern in its leanings. West Virginia is Southern by "default", but really is its own region to many.

But Maryland, Missouri and Delaware? They have Southern influences, sure, but aren't considered Southern by locals. Nelly rapped about a Midwest " swang", which encapsulates my point perfectly. The whole right "thurr" slang popularized by Nelly, Chingy and others is obviously Southern influences, but none of those artists consider themselves Southern over Midwestern. And those artists are black, where it's been argued on this site that AAs skew Southern in dialect/culture, regardless of region. Whites from these three border states, outside of each states "country" area, are even closer aligned with the Midwest/Northeast.