The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South— is an area in the southeastern and south-central United States. The region is known for its distinct culture and history, having developed its own customs, musical styles and varied cuisines that have helped distinguish it from the rest of the United States. The South owes its unique heritage to a variety of sources, including Native Americans, early European settlements of Spanish, English, German, French, Scots-Irish and Scottish importation of hundreds of thousands of enslaved Africans, historic dependence on slave labor, presence of a large proportion of African Americans in the population, and the aftermath of the Confederacy after the Civil War.

Historically, the South has relied heavily on agriculture but has become more industrialized and urban in the last few decades of the 20th century, attracting national and international migrants. The American South is now among the fastest-growing areas in the United States. Despite rapid economic growth, the South still has persistent poverty, and every Southern state with the exceptions of Maryland, Virginia and Florida has a higher poverty rate than the American average. Poverty is especially prevalent in rural areas. Sociological research has indicated that Southern collective identity stems from political, demographic and cultural distinctiveness. Studies have shown that Southerners are significantly more conservative than non-Southerners in several areas, including religion, morality, international relations and race relations. This is especially evident during presidential elections and in religious attendance figures.

Overall, the South continues to have lower percentages of high school graduates, lower housing values, and lower household incomes than the rest of the United States. These factors, combined with the fact that Southerners continue to maintain strong loyalty to family ties, has led some sociologists to label white Southerners a "quasi-ethnic regional group." In previous censuses, the largest ancestry group identified by Southerners was English or mostly English, with 19,618,370 self-reporting "English" as an ancestry on the 1980 census, followed by 12,709,872 listing "Irish" and 11,054,127 "Afro-American". Almost a third of all Americans who claim English ancestry can be found in the American South, and over a quarter of all Southerners claim English descent as well. The South also continues to have the highest percentage of African-Americans in the country.

Apart from its climate, the living experience in the South increasingly resembles the rest of the nation. The arrival of millions of Northerners (especially in the suburbs and coastal areas) and millions of Hispanics means the introduction of cultural values and social norms not rooted in Southern traditions. Observers conclude that collective identity and Southern distinctiveness are thus declining, particularly when defined against "an earlier South that was somehow more authentic, real, more unified and distinct." The process has worked both ways, however, with aspects of Southern culture spreading throughout a greater portion of the rest of the United States in a process termed "Southernization".

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southern
Of or pertaining to a southern region, especially Southern Europe or the southern United States. The southern climate. Of a wind: blowing from the south; southerly. ...

Dixiecrat
... Democratic Party of the United States of America, from the southern United States, one of the former territories of the Confederate States of America, ...

Confederate States of America
A nation existing from 1861-1865, consisting of the eleven Southern states who sought independence from the United States of America over the issue ...

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United States Declaration of Independence
When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the ...

Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, relating to the right to bear arms, was enacted as part of the Bill of Rights, its ratification occuring on ...

American benevolence
This page contains quotes on whether the United States has benign intentions when it intervenes in other countries. Sourced. Finally, it should be the earnest wish and ...

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Recreation: Motorcycles: Organizations: North ...
Southern Cruisers Riding Club - A national club of riders who get together for riding and friendship. Southern Cruisers Riding Club ...

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Recreation: Outdoors: Hunting: Guides and ...
See also: Recreation: Outdoors: Guides and Outfitters: North America: United States (330) Regional: North America: United States: Recreation and Sports: Outdoors ...

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Regional: North America: United States: Maryland ...
See also: Regional: North America: United States: Maryland: Education (53) Homeschooler's Guide to Southern Maryland - A network of homeschool groups and individual ...