Overview of the culture of North Carolina (USA)
The
Culture
of
North Carolina
is a
subculture
in the
United States
. As one of the original
Thirteen Colonies
,
North Carolina
culture has been greatly influenced by early settlers of
English
,
Scotch-Irish
,
Scotch
,
German
, and
Swiss
descent.
[1]
Likewise,
African Americans
have had great cultural influence in North Carolina, first coming as
enslaved people
during
colonial times
. From slavery to freedom, they have helped shape things such as literary traditions, religious practices, cuisine, music, and popular culture.
[2]
In recent years, North Carolina has seen an influx of people from areas such as
New York
,
Florida
,
Virginia
,
South Carolina
, and
California
; as well as an increase in
Hispanic
,
East Asian
and
Indian
immigrants.
[3]
Many of these U.S. migrants and immigrants from abroad, usually aggregate in one of several
urban
centers across the
Piedmont
region. In
rural
North Carolina, agriculture, small businesses, local venues, and annual festivals help play a major component of the economy. As a whole, the state has formed varied cultures of music, arts, and cuisine among others.
Urban culture
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]
Due to the presence of several dense urban centers in North Carolina, many cities and metropolitan areas have very distinctive cultures, with most having a
melting pot
of cultures and diluting the native
Southern
culture in many urban areas. The
Research Triangle Park
, also known as
The Triangle
, is chiefly composed of
Raleigh
,
Durham
, and
Chapel Hill
. It also includes several other neighboring towns such as
Cary
,
Carrboro
,
Morrisville
and
Apex
. The Triangle serves as an anchor for many large businesses in the area, which has the effect of attracting many secondary and supporting businesses. This, along with the many colleges in the Triangle, has created a high concentration of educated and affluent homes in and around the area. A growing population has also created a demand for independent, unique, high quality restaurants and night life, as well as a high demand for craft breweries.
North Carolina urban centers have many similar amenities found in cities across the United States, although the options and variability can be limited in comparison to larger scale
U.S. cities
. Due to this, there is a high unmet demand for urban amenities and entertainment to match the state's growing metropolitan population. This unmet demand has led to nearly constant construction and development in areas such as The Triangle and
Charlotte metro
for several decades. These construction projects include planned subdivisions, restaurants, strip malls, highway expansions, new schools, and business parks.
Rural culture
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While there are several urban centers across the state, much of North Carolina is also rural. Dense forests cover much of the
mountainous
region of
Western North Carolina
, while
Eastern North Carolina
has many areas of large farmland used for agricultural purposes. Rural North Carolina tends to lean towards
traditional Southern culture
. Common recreational activities in rural North Carolina include horseback riding, hiking, swimming in rivers and lakes, fishing, target shooting and hunting, riding trails on
ATVs
/modified trucks (also called off-roading), and extensive gardening (many families operate small scale farms).
Food
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A nationally famous
cuisine
from North Carolina is pork
barbecue
and
bacon
. In
Eastern North Carolina
, pork barbecue uses a
vinegar
-based sauce and the "whole hog" is cooked, using both white and dark meat. While there is not one town in Eastern North Carolina that can claim to be the indisputable "capital" of Eastern Carolina barbecue, the medium-sized cities of
Greenville
and
Goldsboro
, and their surrounding communities boast the highest concentrations of highly ranked establishments.
[
citation needed
]
The annual Newport Pig Pickin' (the largest whole pig cooking contest in North Carolina)
[
citation needed
]
is held featuring primarily eastern-style barbecue.
Central and
Western North Carolina
pork barbecue uses a
tomato
and vinegar based sauce, and only the pork shoulder (dark meat) is used. The "capital" of Central and Western Carolina barbecue is the
Piedmont Triad
town of
Lexington
, home of the
Lexington Barbecue Festival
, which brings in over 100,000 visitors each October.
[4]
Arts
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]
Literature
[
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]
Music
[
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]
North Carolina is known particularly for its history of
old-time music
. Many recordings were made in the early 20th century by folk song collector
Bascom Lamar Lunsford
. Influential North Carolina country musicians like the
North Carolina Ramblers
and
Al Hopkins
helped solidify the sound of country music in the late 1920s. Other influential
bluegrass
musicians such as
Earl Scruggs
,
Doc Watson
and
Del McCoury
are also from North Carolina.
Arthur Smith
is a notable North Carolina musician/entertainer who had the first nationally syndicated television program which featured
country music
. Smith composed "
Guitar Boogie
", the all-time best selling guitar instrumental, and "
Dueling Banjos
", the all-time best selling banjo composition. Country artist
Eric Church
from the
Hickory
area, has had multiple #1 albums on the Billboard 200, including
Chief
in 2011. Both North and South Carolina are a hotbed for traditional country blues, especially the style known as the
Piedmont blues
.
Elizabeth Cotten
, from
Chapel Hill
, was active in the
American folk music revival
.
Because of their proximity to universities, areas such as Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill (collectively known as the Triangle), Asheville, Greensboro, Greenville, Charlotte, and Wilmington have long been a well-known center for indie rock, metal, punk, jazz, country, and hip-hop. Bands and groups from these popular music scenes include
The Avett Brothers
,
Corrosion of Conformity
,
Superchunk
,
The Rosebuds
,
The Love Language
,
Troop 41
,
Ben Folds Five
,
Squirrel Nut Zippers
,
The Carolina Chocolate Drops
,
Lords of the Underground
,
Between the Buried and Me
, and
He Is Legend
.
Notable rappers, producers, and people in
hip-hop
from North Carolina include:
J. Cole
,
DaBaby
,
Petey Pablo
,
9th Wonder
,
Phonte
and
Big Pooh
of
Little Brother
,
Rapsody
,
Fred Durst
,
Mez
,
Lute
,
Ski Beatz
,
Deniro Farrar
, and
Cordae
.
Education
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The
University of North Carolina
system encompasses 16
public universities
including
North Carolina A&T State University
,
North Carolina State University
,
North Carolina Central University
,
UNC-Pembroke
,
UNC-Chapel Hill
,
Elizabeth City State University
,
East Carolina University
,
Western Carolina University
,
Winston-Salem State University
,
UNC Charlotte
,
UNC Greensboro
,
Fayetteville State University
and
Appalachian State University
. Along with its public universities, North Carolina has 58 public
community colleges
in its
community college system
. There are also a number of private colleges, for example
Duke University
in
Durham
,
Wake Forest University
in
Winston-Salem
,
Campbell University
in
Buies Creek
and
Elon University
, in
Elon
.
Sports
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]
North Carolina is home to professional-level sports teams, including basketball, football, soccer and hockey:
NASCAR
racing is also a popular sport in North Carolina.
NASCAR Cup Series
races are frequently held at the
Charlotte Motor Speedway
in
Concord
, part of the
Charlotte Metropolitan Area
.
References
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Bibliography
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]