Texas being excluded from the South (Houston, Dallas: company, working, east coast)

[TexasReb]

Originally Posted by Pilsn3r

Why can't it be both?

National Geographic

or

Why no one can agree where the South really is (actually has multiple articles)

Colorful Maps
In order, the maps show Texas as: South, Frontier, "Texas" by itself (except parts of west and panhandle Texas), then a mix of south, great plains, and southwest, etc.

I know people (total of 7) in El Paso, they don't consider themselves part of the "South". People I know in Amarillo I'm not sure, never asked. But in Lubbock (3 people), they didn't consider themselves part of the "South" either, but part of the "West". [I disclosed my sample size which does not translate into a statistically sound representation of the residents of those areas ]

Very interesting maps and article;thanks for sharing

[Redlionjr]

Originally Posted by homeinatx

Flogging this dead horse again. Sigh. Texas is southern, and southwestern and western and Mexican, but it is most of all its own region. And its strongest identity is as a border state. It has the longest border with Mexico of any U.S. state. It was once a Mexican province. It was also a member of the Confederacy, for a shorter period of time. Race relations in Texas have ALWAYS been triangulated. Its historical white settlement patterns are predominantly southern anywhere east of 35, but central Texas is an English speaking German colony. Does not matter how much the Mexican population grows in Chicago or Atlanta, neither Georgia, nor Illinois will ever be 40 percent LatinX, and there were never Tejanos there: people who can justifiably say, we did not move, the border did. Like Louisiana and New Mexico, the dominant religion is Catholicism though Southern Baptists are also important. The state cocktail is the margarita, not the mint julep.There is some great soul food and country cooking in Texas, but it is tamales for Christmas and Selena outsells George Strait. It has a nasty racist history against African Americans, as does the entire U.S. Not just the south. And economically and in certain ways culturally - not necessarily politically - it has way more in common with California than the south. Oil, multiple large, cosmopolitan urban areas - massive topographical diversity, burgeoning Tech economies, and unlike ANY southern state: a majority minority state. (The others are HI, CA and NM). Of course, the south is not monolithic, neither is the northeast or the midwest, so while Texas can be seen as borderline southern, it also borders the southwest, and its history and the concerted attempt to distance itself from its southern roots and history make it sufficiently distinct from the south for it to be its own region, down to its stupid power grid. . . Not hard to grasp. Texas has a distinct food, culture, literature, frontage road system etc . . .

Clearly you never had a tamale from Mississippi

https://youtu.be/ahUrObuiqgM

Some of the best tamales I ever had were from Clarksdale,Miss.

[RMESMH]

Originally Posted by TexasReb

Very true, as rgional self-identification polls also indicate a majority of Texans consider themselves to live in the South and consider themselves to be Southerners as opposed to West and Westerners, as well. But really, it is both at the same time. When it comes to Texas, being one doesn't exclude it from also being the other at the time.

Personally, I think of Texas as being essentially a Southern state (historically, culturally, politically, religiously, socially,etc) but flavored with definite traits of the frontier post-bellum West).

Very well put.

As a native Californian who has lived in Texas since the late 2000s, and has spent time in all of the 'lower 48' states, I agree.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by RMESMH

Very well put.

As a native Californian who has lived in Texas since the late 2000s, and has spent time in all of the 'lower 48' states, I agree.

Me too! Not a native either, but I have lived here since 1993. And actually lived off and on in Texas earlier than that, in the central area around San Antonio.

[Dopo]

This topic is very annoying because you have to define "The South"

Historical South? Confederacy map,
For whatever reason a lot of are stuck with that idea, even though the confederacy only lasted 4 years and disappeared 156 years ago.
Kentucky, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Missouri and Oklahoma would be removed.

Cultural South? Similar to above but Texas would be excluded because of the huge influx of people from all over the World that moved to Texas the last few decades.

Geographical South? Texas could be included, but then Virginia and West Virginia would be counted as part of the North
Richmond, Virginia is the same distance from Toronto, Canada than it is from Jacksonville, Florida.


In my opinion, somebody needs to make a decision (don't know where)
and divide the country into logical regions
you have to be an idiot to think that Virginia and Texas are in the same region
Austin, Texas is closer to Los Angeles than it is to Richmond, Virginia.

[KathrynAragon]

Geographically and historically, Texas is a southern state.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

Geographically and historically, Texas is a southern state.

Geographically New Mexico is also part of the South

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Geographically New Mexico is also part of the South

Yes, and it's a southwestern state. And as I've stated numerous times, Texas is a huge state and part of it is in the southwest and part is in the southeast (the most populated portion, but I digress). The geographical line going east/west goes right through the state of Texas.

I don't really have to explain this over and over again do I?

[ScoPro]

Texas is not part of the southeast. We are geographically south-central.
East & southeast Texas are part of the South. West Texas is southwestern..

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by ScoPro

Texas is not part of the southeast. We are geographically south-central.
East & southeast Texas are part of the South. West Texas is southwestern..

If you look at a map of the US,Texas is dead center south. (I didn't say by the way, that Texas is a southeastern state.)


Texas is a southern state. People can deny it all they want but it won't change that fact. I am done here. Fight amongst yourselves. Or don't. Say Texas isn't southern all you want. Or say that it is. It won't change a thing. Have at it.