Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the
Southern United States
The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it covers, most definitions include the U.S. states below the
Mason–Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon line, also called the Mason and Dixon line or Mason's and Dixon's line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (part of Virginia ...
that seceded and comprised the
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
, almost always including the
Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
.
The term became popularized throughout the United States by songs that nostalgically referred to the American South.
Region
Geographically, ''Dixie'' usually means the eleven
Southern states Southern States may refer to:
*The independent states of the Southern hemisphere
United States
* Southern United States, or the American South
* Southern States Cooperative, an American farmer-owned agricultural supply cooperative
* Southern Stat ...
that
seceded
Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics lea ...
from the United States of America in late 1860 and early 1861 to form the
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
. They are listed below in order of secession:
#
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
#
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
#
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
#
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
#
Georgia
#
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
#
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
#
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
#
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
#
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
#
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
Although
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
is rarely considered part of Dixie today,
it is below the
Mason–Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon line, also called the Mason and Dixon line or Mason's and Dixon's line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (part of Virginia ...
. If the origin of the term ''Dixie'' is accepted as referring to the region south and west of that line, Maryland lies within Dixie. It can be argued that Maryland was part of Dixie before the Civil War, especially culturally. In this sense, it would remain so into the 1970s, until an influx of people from the
Northeast
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...
made the state and its culture significantly less Southern (especially
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
and the suburbs of
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
).
However, the southern part of the state and
Maryland's Eastern Shore still remain, culturally, Southern and continue to share many common traits associated with Dixie.
[So Where is the Border? It begins with an imaginary line from Cambridge, Md. to Fredericksburg, Va., follows the Rappahannock River up into the Piedmont, across the Baptist Line in West Virginia, along the Ohio River, and along the Baptist Line in southern Illinois.]
![Bayou Navigation in Dixie, 1863](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Bayou_Navigation_in_Dixie%2C_1863.jpg)
As for the nation's capital itself: "Whether Washington should be defined as a Southern city has been a debate since the Civil War, when it was the seat of the Northern government but a hotbed of rebel sympathy," the ''Washington Post'' wrote in 2011. "The Washington area's 'Southernness' has fallen into steep decline, part of a trend away from strongly held regional identities. In the 150th anniversary year of the start of the Civil War, the region at the heart of the conflict has little left of its historic bond with Dixie."
The
Florida Big Bend includes a
Dixie County
Dixie County is a county located in the Big Bend region of the northern part of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,759. Its county seat is Cross City.
History
Dixie County was created in 1921 from the sou ...
. Certain parts of
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
and
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
that are considered more culturally Southern than the rest of these two states have been nicknamed
Little Dixie (Oklahoma)
Little Dixie is a name given to southeast Oklahoma, which in the past was strongly influenced by Southern ("Dixie") culture, as its white settlers were chiefly Southerners seeking a start in new lands following the American Civil War. In addition, ...
and
Little Dixie (Missouri), respectively.
The location and boundaries of Dixie have, over time, become increasingly subjective and mercurial. Today, it is most often associated with parts of the Southern United States where traditions and legacies of the Confederate era and the
Antebellum South
In History of the Southern United States, the history of the Southern United States, the Antebellum Period (from la, ante bellum, lit=Status quo ante bellum, before the war) spanned the Treaty of Ghent, end of the War of 1812 to the start of ...
live most strongly.
The concept of Dixie as the location of a certain set of cultural assumptions, mindsets, and traditions was explored in the book ''
The Nine Nations of North America'' (1981).
Origin of the name
![DixBankNote](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/DixBankNote.jpg)
According to the ''
Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a com ...
'', the origin of this nickname remains obscure. The most common theories, according to ''A Dictionary of Americanisms on Historical Principles'' (1951) by Mitford M. Mathews include the following:
* ''Dixie'' may be derived from
Jeremiah Dixon, one of the surveyors of the
Mason–Dixon line
The Mason–Dixon line, also called the Mason and Dixon line or Mason's and Dixon's line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (part of Virginia ...
, which defined the border between Maryland and Pennsylvania, separating free and slave states subsequent to the
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a federal legislation of the United States that balanced desires of northern states to prevent expansion of slavery in the country with those of southern states to expand it. It admitted Missouri as a Slave states an ...
. Jonathan Lighter, the editor of the ''Historical Dictionary of American Slang'', connects the terms ''Mason–Dixon line'' and ''Dixie'' via a children's game played in nineteenth century New York City.
* ''Dixie'' may have originally referred to currency issued first by the Citizens State Bank in the
French Quarter of New Orleans and then by other banks in
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
. These banks issued ten-dollar notes labeled ''Dix'' on the reverse side, French for ''ten'' (French pronunciation: , ). The notes were known as Dixies by Southerners, and the area around
and the French-speaking parts of Louisiana came to be known as Dixieland.
Eventually, usage of the term broadened to refer to the Southern states in general.
* Another suggestion is that ''Dixie'' preserves the name of Johan Dixie (sometimes spelled Dixy), a slave owner on
Manhattan Island
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. According to a story recounted in ''Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends'' (2008), Dixie's slaves were later sold in the South, where they spoke of better treatment while working on Dixie's land. There is no evidence that this story is true.
Uses of the term
![Gwine Back to Dixie](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Gwine_Back_to_Dixie.jpg)
During the
Jazz Age and the
American folk music revival
The American folk music revival began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Josh White, Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Big Bill Broonzy, Billie Holiday, Richard Dyer-Benn ...
, "Dixie" was used widely in popular music such as ''
Swanee'', ''
Are You From Dixie?'', ''
Is It True What They Say About Dixie? "Is It True What They Say About Dixie?" is a 1936 song written by Irving Caesar, Sammy Lerner and Gerald Marks.
The lyrics begin: "Is it true what they say about Dixie? Does the sun really shine all the time? Do the sweet magnolias blossom at every ...
'' and, more contemporaneously, ''
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
"The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" is a song written by Robbie Robertson and originally recorded by the Canadian-American roots rock group the Band in 1969 and released on their eponymous second album. Levon Helm provided the lead vocals. T ...
'' and ''
Dixieland Delight''. The first popular song to contain "Dixie" in its name was ''
I Wish I Was In Dixie,'' composed in 1859 and incorporated as an unofficial anthem of the
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
.
In terms of self-identification and appeal, the popularity of the word ''Dixie'' is declining. A 1976 study revealed that in an area of the South covering about 350,000 square miles (all of Mississippi and Alabama; almost all of Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina; and around half of Louisiana, Arkansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Florida) the term reached 25% of the popularity of the term ''American'' in names of commercial business entities. A 1999 analysis found that between 1976 and 1999, in 19% of U.S. cities sampled, there was an increase of relative use of ''Dixie''; in 48% of cities sampled, there was a decline; and no change was recorded in 32% of cities. A 2010 study found that in the course of 40 years, the area in question shrank to just , to the area where Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida meet. In 1976, at about ''Dixie'' reached at least 6% of the popularity of ''American''; in 2010, the corresponding area was a .
![Southern United States by Christopher A](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Southern_United_States_by_Christopher_A._Cooper_and_H._Gibbs_Knotts.png)
Sociologists Christopher A. Cooper and H. Gibbs Knotts surveyed all 50 states and the
District of Columbia
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
for the use of the words "Dixie" and "Southern" in business names. Unlike the survey conducted by John Shelton Reed, who concentrated on cities, Cooper & Knotts surveyed entire states using modern technology rather than the physical search of telephone books that were available to Reed. They excluded the chain
Winn-Dixie from the study. Their data, within these parameters, resulted in a 13-state region which they divided into three tiers, from high to low scores. In the first tier were Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. The second tier was Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The third tier was Florida, Oklahoma, Virginia, and West Virginia.
In 1965, the Washington Redskins football team removed from the team song the word "Dixie" and a musical quotation from the
song of the name after a Black fan wrote to the owner of the team, describing the racial unrest that "Dixie" caused and asking for it to be stopped.
In the 21st century, several groups or organizations removed "Dixie" from their names so as not to glorify the Confederacy. They included Dolly Parton's
Dixie Stampede
Herschend Family Entertainment (HFE) is a privately owned themed-entertainment company that operates several theme parks and tourist attractions within the United States, and as of 2021, one aquarium in Vancouver, Canada.
Founded by Jack and P ...
, the music group
Dixie Chicks
The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and E ...
,
and the
Dixie Classic Fair The Carolina Classic Fair, formerly the Dixie Classic Fair, is an annual fair held in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The fair takes place every autumn on the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds (formerly the Forsyth County Fairgrounds), which is part of the ...
. The board of trustees at
Dixie State University in
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
voted unanimously in December 2020 to change the name of the institution, with the Utah Legislature putting "Utah Tech University" into effect in 2022 to distance the university from the "Dixie" term.
See also
*
Bible Belt
*
Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
*
"Dixie" (song)
*
Dixie (Utah)
*
Dixie Alley
"Dixie Alley" is a colloquial term sometimes used for areas of the southern United States which are particularly vulnerable to strong to violent tornadoes. Some argue this is distinct from the better known "Tornado Alley" and that it has a high f ...
, a nickname for a portion of the southern United States that sees frequent
tornadoes
*
Dixiecrat
The States' Rights Democratic Party (whose members are often called the Dixiecrats) was a short-lived segregationist political party in the United States, active primarily in the South. It arose due to a Southern regional split in opposition t ...
*
Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
{{coord, 34, N, 86, W, display=title
American culture
Culture of the Southern United States
Regions of the United States
Regions of the Southern United States
Antebellum South