# Cultural differences between the northern & southern parts of the west coast

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cultural-differences-between-the-northern-southern-parts-of-the-west-coast/539130>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [May 12, 2010, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cultural-differences-between-the-northern-southern-parts-of-the-west-coast/539130 "2010-05-12T01:59:38Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![IdahoMauleMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/71c47a/32.png) [@IdahoMauleMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IdahoMauleMan)\
**Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cultural-differences-between-the-northern-southern-parts-of-the-west-coast/539130/21 "2010-05-25T03:55:56Z")

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> [@Wesley\_Clark](#):
>
> I haven’t visited there much but I get the impression the southern parts like San Diego and Los Angeles have more of a materialistic and status oriented sort of culture while northern parts of the west coast (Portland Oregon, Seattle, the Bay area although the bay area isn’t exactly northern on the west coast) are more progressive or live and let live.
> 
> Is there any truth to this assumption (that the northern west coast has a different culture than the southern)? Obviously there are areas in the northern parts that are very status and materialistic, and parts in the south that are laid back and progressive.
> 
> If so, what could cause it? Would the weather be a cause?

I don’t know if you are specifically referring to the area west of the Cascades and California Sierras. But if you aren’t, there are huge cultural differences once you hop eastward over the range into the Intermountain Basin. Somewhat akin to the Central Valley of CA vs. the coastal cities of SF, LA and SD.

This is (roughly) bounded by the polygon of Yakima-Spokane-SandPoint-Boise-Reno-Klamath Falls-Bend-Yakima.

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**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\
**Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cultural-differences-between-the-northern-southern-parts-of-the-west-coast/539130/22 "2010-05-25T21:08:58Z")

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> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#):
>
> San Francisco enjoys a healthy rivalry with Los Angeles.
> 
> Los Angeles often forgets that San Francisco exists. 😃

That’s similar to what I was going to say. I lived in Los Angeles for many years, and now I live in the Bay Area. The rivalry between S.F. and L.A. is almost entirely one-sided. San Franciscans, in general, hate Los Angeles. People from L.A., in general, think fondly of S.F. as that quaint city a few hundred miles to the north.

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**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\
**Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cultural-differences-between-the-northern-southern-parts-of-the-west-coast/539130/23 "2010-05-25T21:12:35Z")

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> [@Wesley\_Clark](#):
>
> I haven’t visited there much but I get the impression the southern parts like San Diego and Los Angeles have more of a materialistic and status oriented sort of culture while northern parts of the west coast (Portland Oregon, Seattle, the Bay area although the bay area isn’t exactly northern on the west coast) are more progressive or live and let live.
> 
> Is there any truth to this assumption (that the northern west coast has a different culture than the southern)? Obviously there are areas in the northern parts that are very status and materialistic, and parts in the south that are laid back and progressive.
> 
> If so, what could cause it? Would the weather be a cause?

I’ve lived in both areas for many years.

There is some truth to this, but one thing needs to be kept in mind: The L.A. area has a huge population: more than 10 million, I believe. So all kinds of people live there.

For example, there is a tremendous Armenian immigrant community, some of whom I got to know well when I was living there. They are certainly not materialistic or status-oriented.

Or take my own family. My dad was an engineer; my mom worked for a health insurance company. (Both are now retired.) Nothing glamourous about that.

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