Thursday, January 31, 2008

State Names

I wonder, not often, about the people within a state and what you call them. For example, if you're a native to Indiana, you're usually regarded as a 'Hoosier.' From Wisconsin? Generally, you're considered a Cheesehead, whether you like cheese/football, or not. If you're from Texas, you're a Texan - not a Longhorn...that would just make all the other non-UT people pretty angry. (Side note: if you went to Baylor, apparently, you're just from Baylor - not from Texas or a Texan - just Baylor.)

Like Texas, a states' people can be called by some form of their state name - Californian, New Yorker, Floridian, Georgian, Virginian, Washingtonians (from DC, not the state)...but what about those other states that are not so obvious?

Let's take my home state: New Jersey.
We're not New Jerseyians. Although we're the Garden State, we're not Gardeners. Stereotypically, we've got a lot of guidos....but you can't classify everyone in the state as a guido. Others just refer to us as jerks - thanks Jerky Boys - but we're not all jerks. So who are the people from New Jersey?

I'm sure people from New Mexico wouldn't like to be referred to as the New Mexican....sounds like a new breed of our friends from the south (of the border). Do all people from Wisconsin want to be known as Cheeseheads?

How about people in the middle - Iowans? North Dakotans? Kansanites? Utes? What do we call you besides Middle Americans?

Maybe there should be an effort to try and give nicknames to each state - or maybe someone should just point me to a place where I can see how each states' people are referred to.

Wait - a late post script - I was just informed that the following states have the following people:
New Jerkians = New Jersey
Massholes = Massachusetts
Mainiacs = Maine

Lovely.

1 comment:

  1. Illinois resident - Illini (not Illinoisian as some think).

    Although, people from the Chicago area do not call themselves Illini, they just go by Chicagoan.

    Hopefully whoever they are speaking to is smart enough to know Chicagoans live in Illinois.

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