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What is it that Missouri's lacking? I just don't see West Virginia as being a Northern state in any sense...culturally, lingustically, and demographically, 3/4 of it is almost completely Southern. The only thing Northern about any of it is which side it fought on in the Civil War, and even then, Bobilee does a good job of showing that at least 2/3 of the state was on the side of the Confederacy. South of Morgantown and Clarksburg West Virginia is 100% Southern Appalachia. And there is absolutely nothing Midwestern about the vast majority it. And West Virginia doesn't represent the Western states at all.
West Virginia is more of a gradual transition state from north to south. It's not 100% southern Appalachia south of Clarksburg. My mother's family is from central West Virginia (Buckhannon area) and they would laugh in your face if you called them southern. They wouldn't mind "Appalachian," which could mean northern or southern. Really about the only parts of I would southern Appalachian would be the counties south of I-64, with strong emphasis along the Kentucky and Virginia borders. Interestingly, according to the most updated dialect maps, the vast majority of the state falls in the South and North Midland speech patterns, not the twangy mountain dialect found in TN, KY, etc.
Of course opinions vary across the state, with the southern counties leaning more to a southern identity.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nep321
I guess. I mean, I could see MO having a significant Midwestern and southern blend, but saying that it has a hint of Northeastern or Western representation is stretching it. How the hell can you say that it represents the Northeast when the states immediately to the northeast of MO, such as Kentucky don't even feel northeastern at all?!
Kentucky is not to the Northeast of Missouri...it's to the southeast (except for a small sliver of the bootheel). And yes, I agree that the Northeast doesn't really get represented in Missouri. Ohio might be a better state to represent the Northeast than Missouri. Ohio and Missouri are great examples of regions of all of the U.S. because both are edge states in the Midwest with noticeable Southern influences. Missouri in particular touches on the Great Plains while Ohio touches the Northeast. I also agree on whoever said Maryland.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tallydude02
West Virginia is more of a gradual transition state from north to south. It's not 100% southern Appalachia south of Clarksburg. My mother's family is from central West Virginia (Buckhannon area) and they would laugh in your face if you called them southern. They wouldn't mind "Appalachian," which could mean northern or southern. Really about the only parts of I would southern Appalachian would be the counties south of I-64, with strong emphasis along the Kentucky and Virginia borders. Interestingly, according to the most updated dialect maps, the vast majority of the state falls in the South and North Midland speech patterns, not the twangy mountain dialect found in TN, KY, etc.
Of course opinions vary across the state, with the southern counties leaning more to a southern identity.
Where are these updated dialect maps that you speak of? The latest ones I saw essentially used U.S. Highway 50 as the northern boundary of southern dialect. And I know for a fact that I've heard southern dialect spoken in Parkersburg.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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Originally Posted by Gnutella
First of all, Kentucky is not northeast of Missouri; it's southeast. Second of all, St. Louis was developed very much like a Northeastern city.
Maybe so, but St. Louis is a solidly Midwestern city. It has a lot more in common with Chicago, Detroit, and Cleveland than it does with Boston, NYC, or Philadelphia. KC, in the meantime, has the most in common with Omaha, Des Moines, and Minneapolis.
-Beaches
-Ranches
-Big cities (some of the biggest in the country)
-Deserts
-Southern mentality
-Northern mentality with transplants from the north
-Droughts
-Thunderstorms
-Tornadoes and hurricanes
-Growing very fast.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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Originally Posted by nep321
California has nothing that resembles the Northeast or South.
Or the Midwest, for that matter. California is really it's own animal. If anything, I'd say it is a blend of both Northwest and Southwest. It is an INCREDIBLY tall state. The southernmost part extends as far south as Texas, while the northernmost part extends as far as north as the Great Lakes. Topographically and culturally it is like both the PNW and the Southwest.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
2,709 posts, read 5,092,866 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nep321
I guess. I mean, I could see MO having a significant Midwestern and southern blend, but saying that it has a hint of Northeastern or Western representation is stretching it. How the hell can you say that it represents the Northeast when the states immediately to the northeast of MO, such as Kentucky don't even feel northeastern at all?!
The western influence comes from Missouri touching the Great Plains. It borders three Great Plains states: Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska.
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