to wish people would stop saying 'The North'

[Lludmilla]

...like it's all one great big homogenous lump of land.

This irritates me at the best of times, but the recent Covid scapegoating has made it worse. Newsflash: Covid rates actually VARY in what people are referring to as 'The North'. Just like poverty rates, crime rates, unemployment rates, everything really. Who'd have thought it?

I've spent my life in various places, mainly around the north-west and the east Midlands, and I don't have all the southern counties lumped together in my mind as one big mass called 'The South'.

Am I alone in feeling that some (note I said SOME) of those who use the term 'The North' are exhibiting unconscious ignorance/bias?

They do the same think in the States

The North- The South

I’m Northern and love the term ‘The North’.

“I’ve spent my life in various places, mainly around the north-west”

Well I, for one, find this an outrage. AIBU? No. The sheer audacity of the terminology. It reeks of unconscious bias towards the North-East. Shocking business - this lumping together of Liverpool with Preston and the good folk of Lake Windermere. Not to mention Ellesmere Port - will nobody think of them?

I'm not originally from the UK; I moved here 15 years ago and have spent most of my adult life here in the midlands.

One of the first things I commented about to my husband was the signs on the M1 to "The North". It's so vague. They could just say M1 North, or Northbound, or whatever, but saying "The North" implies that there is a destination called The North and you just need to read this thread to see what people think about that

Anyway OP I'm afraid you're shouting at clouds if you think it'll change, but I do agree that when some people say The North, they're saying it with an implied bias. FWIW whenever I hear it I tend to repeat it as ominously as possible (THE NORTH ) and ask for clarification as to what they mean, mostly because I really don't always know wtf they mean, and also because I like to highlight how vague it all is. Thankfully I don't hear it often because most of our friends are from Yorkshire and they tend to be more specific in their generalisations (oh yes that's Proper North, etc!)

YANBU. As someone who lives in London.

Lots of planets have a North.

I'm east coast. Anything above me is Up North. Anything below me is Down South. The Midlands are to my left!

“One of the first things I commented about to my husband was the signs on the M1 to "The North"”

If you’re driving the other way, another sign says, “The South. “ It’s quite helpful really.

I’m Edinburgh and the north to me is Inverness

I find it a bit odd (especially how friends in the Midlands refer to themselves as Northeners, surely Mid means middle?)

However ‘The North’ is on the London roadsigns toward the M1 so I think you’re being unreasonable to see it as a negative term. It basically means North in relation to the capital.

I'm not a northerner I'm from the Midlands! 'The Shire' to be precise 😂...these are the arguments I have with my southern partner (Kent).

@FlyingSquid Thu 15-Oct-20 17:24:09
I'm always surprised at how far north Sheffield is. To my (Lancs/Cumbria) mindset it's somewhere about level with Birmingham, not a hop skip and peatbog away from Manchester.

But Manchester is south, it's only just not in the Midlands.

Another Southerner here who has no concept really.

If pushed I would probably say anything north of Milton Keynes is up north - sorry

SleepingStandingUp

Not really to which part?!

My sister lives up north and I live in London, we both say up north, down south, unable to see why anyone would be offended? I love where she lives, so does DC !!!!

Love the idea that Liverpool is even considered as being in The North. That's a pretty long drive south for me with lots of diverse populations in between.

Well unless you live at a pole it's all relative!

@WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll

SleepingStandingUp

Not really to which part?!

The Miidlands being a long way south

@Disfordarkchocolate

Love the idea that Liverpool is even considered as being in The North. That's a pretty long drive south for me with lots of diverse populations in between.

But are you in England or Scotland?

Re covid, isn't the issue less about over generalisation of geographies, and more about scapegoating happening at all?

England @SleepingStandingUp but if I fancied breakfast in Scotland I wouldn't have to get up early.

@Disfordarkchocolate , are you in Berwick?

@Disfordarkchocolate

England *@SleepingStandingUp* but if I fancied breakfast in Scotland I wouldn't have to get up early.

I'm assuming East not West then, the country does cut spiritually far up along that coast

There was talk of the Gov moving out of London whilst repairs to building were done- so I thought they could move to the middle of the country so Carlisle, however if you include the Shetland Isles the centre is prob Glasgow!

It always makes me think of game of thrones when people say the north.