Names for metropolitan areas

[empirestate]

Like someone mentioned about Oklahoma City, people in the Bay Area refer to San Francisco proper as "The City."

Even in Rochester, NY, "the city" is used to refer to, well, the city, as opposed to one of the surrounding suburban towns or villages. Of course, "the city" is also used by NYC folks to refer to that city, sometimes to distinguish it from its suburbs (or even to refer to Manhattan as opposed to other boroughs), but quite often it's not in distinction from any other place; it's merely a short term for NYC.

Naturally, when folks from NYC come upstate to Rochester, some confusion can often arise. You ask where they live, they say "the city", and you start naming neighborhoods in the city of Rochester, drawing a blank stare from the downstater.

[sandwalk]

For the Rockford, IL & Beloit, WI urban areas, the term 'Stateline' is often used.  Rockford has a few nicknames, mostly notably the 'Forest City.'  Other Rockford nicknames, endearing as they are, include the 'Screw City' and RockVegas.

[kphoger]

Mexico City is referred to as 'La Ciudad', but I don't have a feel for how far away from the city that moniker is well known.

[DandyDan]

Like someone mentioned about Oklahoma City, people in the Bay Area refer to San Francisco proper as "The City."

In Minnesota, people who don't live in the Twin Cities area such as much of my mom's half of the family tree often refer to the Twin Cities as "The Cities".

[Coelacanth]

In Minnesota, people who don't live in the Twin Cities area such as much of my mom's half of the family tree often refer to the Twin Cities as "The Cities".

Well, I do live in the Twin Cities and refer to them as "The Cities". This is generally in response to a question of "where are you from?" from someone outside "the Cities", but who lives close enough to know what that means.

Local broadcasters tend to use the terms "Twin Cities" and "Metro area" with about equal frequency.

On an unrelated note, Duluth and Superior comprise the "Twin Ports".

[StogieGuy7]

A couple of interesting ones for larger metropolitan regions in the west:

The Wasatch Front: generally the area from Provo's southernmost suburbs all the way north to Brigham City (occasionally extended to Logan) and encompassing Provo/Orem, Salt Lake City and Ogden.  This is the bulk of Utah's population, all grouped into a roughly 120 mile by 20 mile area.

Each individual sub-section of that conglomeration has it's own nickname: the Logan area is in the Cache Valley; there's Ogden/Weber County, Davis County, the Salt Lake Valley and Utah Valley (anchored by Provo). 

The Front Range: Mainly used to describe the area including the Denver metropolitan area, Boulder/Longmont, Loveland/Ft. Collins/Greeley, etc.  Colorado Springs metro is a southern extension to this moniker.   It's yet another population center that covers a large geographic area, but yet is interconnected as one larger metropolis (more or less - the Springs being less).   

The Western Slope: That would be the Grand Junction, CO area, extending to (and including) Delta, Montrose and Rifle.

The Magic Valley: Twin Falls/Jerome, ID and general vicinity.

Treasure Valley: Boise/Nampa/Caldwell, ID metro area.

From New England:

The Springfield, MA area has also long been referred to as the Pioneer Valley.  Though I have heard this used less in my more recent visits to that area.   

The Manchester/Concord/Nashua, NH area is often called the Merrimack Valley by Granite Staters, but ask a *Masshole* and they'll say it's the Lowell/Lawrence/Haverhill, MA area.  Both are right, by the way - but they're not the same metro area. 

[amroad17]

The Hampton Roads area (which started being used around 1990 for the area instead of Tidewater)...

I've heard "Tidewater" used to describe the whole region, as far west as Emporia.

That is true. The "Tidewater" region extended to I-95 in southern VA, east of Richmond (near Providence Forge), and up to the Rappahannock River.  The area north of the Rappahannock is usually called the Northern Neck.

[Darkchylde]

NOLA for New Orleans

This actually varies by location.

On the Southshore, it's just called "the city."

On the Northshore, it's called "Across the Lake" or "the city."

[kendancy66]

NOLA for New Orleans

This actually varies by location.

On the Southshore, it's just called "the city."

On the Northshore, it's called "Across the Lake" or "the city."

Is NOLA is used more when writing addresses, rather than in conversation?

[US81]

NOLA for New Orleans

This actually varies by location.

On the Southshore, it's just called "the city."

On the Northshore, it's called "Across the Lake" or "the city."

Is NOLA is used more when writing addresses, rather than in conversation?

Slightly off topic, but - directions in NOLA - riverside or lakeside rather than south or north - cool!

[StogieGuy7]

The Milwaukee, WI metro area is often called 'Milwaukeeland'.

I have yet to hear anyone call it that and, as I write this, I'm sitting downtown.  Perhaps some have used that descriptor (i.e. I'm not calling you a liar or anything), but I tend to doubt that it's commonly used. 

The one that I hear most often to describe the "Milwaukee area" in generic terms is "Southeast Wisconsin".   That takes in Kenosha, Racine and everything else in the Milwaukee media market. 

[NWI_Irish96]

On the INDOT city maps, the Indiana suburbs of Louisville are called the Falls City area.

I've lived in Jeffersonville for 7 years now and have never once heard anybody use the term "Falls City".  The entire metro area is referred to as singularly as "Kentuckiana" or dually as Greater Louisville and Southern Indiana.

Also, the same INDOT city inset that uses the term "Falls City" also still contains IN 131, which has not existed for 10 years, and is missing Veterans Parkway, a major thoroughfare that has been built within the last 10 years.  I'm guessing nobody at INDOT has bothered to update that city inset in a very long time.

[hbelkins]

When I hear "Falls City," I think of cheap beer.

[djsinco]

Maybe only a metropolitan area during the beach season I must mention home -->The Emerald Coast http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald_Coast in Florida consists of Escambia county (Pensacola area), Santa Rosa county (Navarre area), Okaloosa county (Fort Walton Beach), Walton county  (Seaside area) and Bay county (Panama City area) gulf coasts.
In the trucker vernacular se Florida is known as "the bottom", how appropriate is that?

Hmmm, looking at the "shape" of Florida, it looks much more like male anatomy than the bottom

[djsinco]

Like someone mentioned about Oklahoma City, people in the Bay Area refer to San Francisco proper as "The City."

Even in Rochester, NY, "the city" is used to refer to, well, the city, as opposed to one of the surrounding suburban towns or villages. Of course, "the city" is also used by NYC folks to refer to that city, sometimes to distinguish it from its suburbs (or even to refer to Manhattan as opposed to other boroughs), but quite often it's not in distinction from any other place; it's merely a short term for NYC.

Naturally, when folks from NYC come upstate to Rochester, some confusion can often arise. You ask where they live, they say "the city", and you start naming neighborhoods in the city of Rochester, drawing a blank stare from the downstater.

I was born in NYC, and always kick myself when Oklahomans refer to Oklahoma City as "the City."

[Doctor Whom]

People in Baltimore refer to Baltimore City as "the city" and Baltimore County as "the county."

[Grzrd]

In my early years, the Warriors led me to believe that San Francisco is "The City":

[SP Cook]

Couple I hear from time to time.

The Louisville metro is often "Kentuciana".   I have also heard "Michiana" for the South Bend, etc, area.  Bristol-Kingsport-Johnson City are "the Tri-Cites" (even though there are four cities, as Bristol, VA and Bristol, TN have seperate governments).  But the entire area, generally defined as places that get TV from there, is "the Mountain Empire".    All of coastal SC from the NC line (or slightly north of it) to Murrels Inlet is "the Grand Stand", Myrtle Beach being only a small part of that.  When I was a kid "Reds Country" meant the places where Cincinnait was the nearest big league city, which was quite much more than just Cincinnati metro. 

As to Floridia's "coasts".  From north to south on the Atlantic side:  First Coast (Jacksonville - St. Augustine), Fun Coast (Daytona), Space Coast (Cape Canaveal), Treasure Coast (Jupiter-Palm Beach), Gold Coast (Ft. Lauderdale - Miami), Keys.  On the Gulf side, Northwest Florida (Pensacola), Big Bend (Tallahasse), Forgotten Coast (St. Joe developments), Sun Coast (Tampa Bay and the Naples area together).

[NE2]

Fun Coast (Daytona)

Never heard this one. They must not do any advertising in Orlando.

[CentralCAroadgeek]

In my early years, the Warriors led me to believe that San Francisco is "The City"[/img]

Yep, SF is known as "The City by the Bay"

Speaking of SF, the Bay Area is divided into several regions. Pretty much anything between San Francisco and Santa Clara is known as The Peninsula. The area around San Jose is the South Bay. Anything east of the bay (such as Oakland) is the East Bay. Finally, anything north of the bay (such as Napa and Vallejo) is in the North Bay.

[jp the roadgeek]

In my early years, the Warriors led me to believe that San Francisco is "The City"[/img]

Yep, SF is known as "The City by the Bay"

Speaking of SF, the Bay Area is divided into several regions. Pretty much anything between San Francisco and Santa Clara is known as The Peninsula. The area around San Jose is the South Bay. Anything east of the bay (such as Oakland) is the East Bay. Finally, anything north of the bay (such as Napa and Vallejo) is in the North Bay.

I've heard Oakland called The City by The City by the Bay.  Hartford and New Haven are often referred to as Greater _____, but there's a movement to call Greater Hartford the Capitol Region.  Another one that is out there is for the Stamford/Greenwich/Norwalk area: The Gold Coast.  The Pioneer Valley refers to most of Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin County, MA within 20 miles east or west of the Connecticut River.  The area west of Boston along the Mass Pike out to 495 is also known as Metro West.  Buffalo area is known as Western New York.

[amroad17]

Just reading through the topic brought some more names to me...

Nags Head, Kill Devil Hills , and Manteo, NC: The Outer Banks (OBX)
Pittsburgh: The Steel City
The area from Jamestown, NY to Binghamton, NY: The Southern Tier (I-86)
Toledo, OH: The Glass City
Cincinnati and Charlotte, NC: The Queen City

And, finally, something Clevelanders have been hearing for many years: The Mistake by the Lake
P.S.:  Cleveland is not that bad of a city.  It now has a mix of the classic northeastern city with the modern interwoven in.

[AsphaltPlanet]

Toronto gets "hog town", or the "big smoke."  "The city" is also common.

The western edge of Lake Ontario is typically referred to as the Golden Horseshoe.

[Road Hog]

If you take a map of Southern Ontario and rotate it 90º clockwise, you'll see it's shaped like an elephant.

That's why Owen Sound is referred to as "The Elephant's Bunghole." 

[StogieGuy7]

Toronto gets "hog town", or the "big smoke."  "The city" is also common.

The western edge of Lake Ontario is typically referred to as the Golden Horseshoe.

The GTA.