1. Illinoisans Are Either Cubs Fans Or Cardinal Fans
Sorry White Sox, but your fan base is a lot smaller than that of the Cubs or the St. Louis Cardinals when it comes to your home state. Chicagoans and the surrounding areas’ sense of hometown pride has created quite a large fan base for the Cubs.
Meanwhile, those in southern Illinois prefer to stick to a team that they feel never disappoints–the St. Louis Cardinals. As for central Illinoisans? They epitomize the divide, with some calling it Cub territory and others rooting for the not-so-home-team, the Cardinals. As with many things in Illinois, this can cause quite a heated neighborly debate.
2. Forget Miles Or Hours, Folks From Illinois Measure Distance In Minutes
While much of the Midwest tends to measure distance in hours, Illinoisans know that the proper way to measure distance is in minutes. If you stop and ask for directions anywhere in the state you’re likely to get a response of “Oh, it’s about fifteen minutes from here.”
3. People In Illinois Have Worn Shorts And A Parka In The Same Day
Oh, that beautiful midwestern weather never seems to be able to be consistent. Illinoisans are no strangers to leaving the house with a coat on only to switch to shorts later in the day and then put that coat right back on (shorts still on, of course) in the evening.
Alternatively, for those who don’t have the convenience of frequent outfit changes this may ring more true: Illinoisans have used both their air conditioning and heat in the same day. Southern Illinoisans may not have this experience quite as prevalent in their life, but they definitely don’t escape it.
4. Illinoisans Know That The Local Ice Cream Shop Opening Equals Summer
Whether it’s your local root beer stand or a Dairy Queen, when it opens you know the best of the year is yet to come.
What better way to start this sunny season than with your local frozen dairy delicatessen opening? I mean, you could mark the beginning of summer with the beginning of road construction but where’s the fun (and sprinkles) in that?
5. People In Illinois Can’t Agree On Anything
Illinois is a big state. While it’s no Texas, the regions of Illinois from north to south can be vastly different. Throw a large city into the geographical mix and the state loses a sense of coherent identity. Chicagoans think they define the state, while the people in downstate Illinois have a bit (sometimes a lot more than a bit) of a dislike for said Chicagoans. Which is probably because…
6. Chicagoans Love Their City So Much They Seem Like Snobs
Now, let’s not get snobbery confused with elitism. Chicagoans can be pretty snobby, but it’s their love for all things Chicago that make them come across that way. It helps to breed a bit of dislike for them from the rest of the Illinois residents. Which probably isn’t helped by the fact that most Chicagoans think anything south of I-80 is “Southern Illinois.” This doesn’t mean Chicagoans are bad, they just love their city so much they sometimes fail to see all the greatness the rest of Illinois has to offer.
7. Southern Illinoisans Are Basically From Kentucky
Given the geography of Illinois, it makes sense that those residents of southern Illinois tend to agree more with the lifestyle of Kentuckians than that of Chicagoans. Their land and lifestyle share more common characteristics with the south than the sprawling metropolis to the north.
8. Illinoisans Have An Accent That Is Hard To Define And Impossible To Miss
Source: Youtube user SWSportsNest
Central Chicago, Chicagoland and Southern Illinois may have some similarities to their diction but more often than not their dialects are starkly different. Southern Illinoisans can tell immediately if they’re talking to someone from Northern Illinois and vice versa. Whether it’s the much talked about (and often joked about) “Chicago Accent” or the slight southern drawl for those in the southern part of the state, one thing is for sure–this state is a beautiful linguistic mess.
9. Folks In Illinois Are A Bunch Of Farmers
Illinois is made up of a lot of agricultural land, and therefore, a large population of farmers. In the more rural areas, it’s not completely uncommon to get stuck behind a tractor and experience a different sort of traffic jam than those in Chicago are used to.
Without our great farmers, where would we get our delicious beef, poultry, vegetables, and fruit? No need for a snarky answer like Iowa because everyone knows local is better.
10. Illinoisans Take Life At A Slower Pace–Except For Those Chicagoans
Naturally, there is a certain pace of life to Chicagoans that isn’t shared with the rest of Illinois, with Champaign-Urbana and Springfield being slight exceptions. As for the rest of the state, they move at a slower, more relaxed pace. Chicagoans tend to find the pace a bit lackadaisical while everyone else finds them to be a bit rushed. It all adds up to having a pace for every lifestyle in the grand ol’ state of Illinois.
Did we miss anything? Tell us what you think of Illinois in the comments below!
