North Florida

One definition of North Florida, excluding the Panhandle

North Florida is a region of the U.S. state of Florida. As its name suggests, it comprises the northern parts of the state. It is one of Florida's three most common "directional" regions, along with Central Florida and South Florida. It includes Jacksonville and nearby localities in Northeast Florida, an interior region known as North Central Florida, and the Florida Panhandle.

Area

As with all vernacular regions, North Florida does not have any officially designated boundaries or status, and is defined differently in different sources. A 2007 study of Florida's regions by geographers Ary Lamme and Raymond K. Oldakowski found that Floridians surveyed identified "North Florida" as comprising the northernmost areas of the state, including both the peninsula and the Florida Panhandle. Additionally, two localized "directional" regions had emerged: North East Florida, representing the area around Jacksonville on the Atlantic coast, and North Central Florida, comprising the central area.^[1] North Florida is one of Florida's three most common directional regions, along with Central Florida and South Florida.^[2] The region includes smaller vernacular regions, particularly along the coast, including the Emerald Coast, and the Big Bend on the Gulf Coast and the First Coast and Surf Coast on the Atlantic.^[1] Lamme and Oldakowski note that the directional region is more commonly used in the interior areas than on the coast.^[2]

Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development agency, divides the state into three economic regions, used within the agency and other state and outside entities, including the Florida Department of Transportation. They identify three regions within the area identified as "North Florida" by Enterprise Florida: Northeast Florida, North Central Florida, and Northwest Florida (representing most of the Panhandle).^[3]

Culture and attributes

Lamme and Oldakowski's survey identifies several demographic, political, and cultural elements that characterize North Florida and distinguish it from other areas of the state. North Floridians considered their area to be part the South and "Dixie"; while Floridians from all parts of the state considered their area part of the South, people in more southern areas typically did not identify with Dixie. Additionally, residents of some parts of North Florida considered their area to be in the Bible Belt, while residents of other parts of the state did not.^[1]

Politically, in contrast to Central Florida, where a majority considered their part of the state moderate, and South Florida, which was more liberal, residents of North Florida overwhelmingly (76%) considered their part of the state conservative; 16% considered it moderate and 8% considered it liberal.^[4] Lamme and Oldakowski's findings track with Barney Warf and Cynthia Waddell's studies of Florida's political geography during the 2000 Presidential election.^[4][5]

North Florida's economy was much more diversified than Central and South Florida, where tourism was by far the most significant industry. While tourism was a significant factor in North Florida's economy, particularly in the Emerald Coast and Daytona areas, other important industries included agriculture in rural areas, education in Tallahasse and Gainesville, and military and finance in Jacksonville.^[6]

Lamme and Oldakowski's survey also found some cultural indicators that characterize North Florida. In general, North Florida was similar to Central Florida and differed from South Florida in these measures. In North and Central Florida, American cuisine was the most popular food, in contrast to South Florida, where ethnic foods were equally popular.^[7] Additionally, while there was little geographical variation for most styles of music, there was regional variation for both country and Latin music. Country was popular in North and Central Florida, and less so in South Florida, while Latin was less popular in North and Central Florida, and more so in South Florida.^[7]

Notes

References

Florida portal

• Lamme, Ary J.; Oldakowski, Raymond K. (2007). "Spinning a New Geography of Vernacular Regional Identity: Florida in the Twenty-First Century". Southeastern Geographer (University of North Carolina Press) 47 (2): 320–340. doi:10.1353/sgo.2007.0029. 
• Warf, Barney; Waddell, Cynthia Waddell (2002). "Florida in the 2000 Presidential Election: Historical Precedents and Contemporary Landscapes". Political Geography 21: 85–90. doi:10.1016/S0962-6298(01)00063-4. 
• Anthony J. Catanese Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions at Florida Atlantic University (2006). Charting the Course: Where is South Florida Heading?. Florida Atlantic University. http://www.soflo.fau.edu/course/report.pdf. Retrieved March 30, 2012. 

v t e  State of Florida Tallahassee (capital) Topics Delegations Environment Floridians Geography Government History State Parks Transportation Visitor Attractions Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Politics Regions Big Bend Central Florida Emerald Coast First Coast Florida Heartland Florida Keys Florida Panhandle Forgotten Coast Fun Coast Glades Gold Coast Nature Coast North Central Florida North Florida South Florida Southwest Florida Space Coast Sun Coast Tampa Bay Area Treasure Coast Metro areas Cape Coral–Fort Myers Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach Fort Walton Beach–Crestview–Destin Gainesville Jacksonville Lakeland–Winter Haven Miami–Fort Lauderdale–Pompano Beach Naples–Marco Island North Port–Bradenton–Sarasota Ocala Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville Palm Coast Panama City–Lynn Haven–Panama City Beach Pensacola–Ferry Pass–Brent Port St. Lucie Punta Gorda Sebastian–Vero Beach Tallahassee Tampa-St. Petersburg–Clearwater Largest cities Jacksonville Miami Tampa St. Petersburg Orlando Hialeah Tallahassee Fort Lauderdale Port St. Lucie Pembroke Pines Cape Coral Hollywood Gainesville Miramar Coral Springs Clearwater Miami Gardens Brandon Palm Bay West Palm Beach Pompano Beach Spring Hill Lakeland Davie Miami Beach Lehigh Acres Deltona Plantation Sunrise Boca Raton Counties Alachua Baker Bay Bradford Brevard Broward Calhoun Charlotte Citrus Clay Collier Columbia DeSoto Dixie Duval Escambia Flagler Franklin Gadsden Gilchrist Glades Gulf Hamilton Hardee Hendry Hernando Highlands Hillsborough Holmes Indian River Jackson Jefferson Lafayette Lake Lee Leon Levy Liberty Madison Manatee Marion Martin Miami‑Dade Monroe Nassau Okaloosa Okeechobee Orange Osceola Palm Beach Pasco Pinellas Polk Putnam Santa Rosa Sarasota Seminole St. Johns St. Lucie Sumter Suwannee Taylor Union Volusia Wakulla Walton Washington