POLL: Michiganders vs Michiganians–Which Term Do You Prefer?
This is not a political post. I repeat--this is NOT a political post. However, it does involve politicians. (And other people, but mostly politicians.)
Governor Whitmer has been doing a lot of press conferences over the last several weeks and I've noticed that she ALWAYS uses the term "Michigander" when she refers to people living in Michigan. Now, I was born and raised in Michigan and have actually only spent about two years out of my forty-something life outside of the state. (And those two years were in Indiana so...pretty much the same.) Anyway, when I was watching the latest press conference, it hit me that when I was a kid we always referred to people that lived in Michigan as "Michiganians." That's when I got to thinking...when did the terminology change? Well, to GOOGLE I went with a "Michiganders vs Michiganians" search. And yes, according to Wikipedia, there's actually been a change in the terminology used to describe people that live in Michigan.
Wikipedia explains that former Michigan governors like Jim Blanchard, John Engler and Jennifer Granholm all used the term Michiganian. However, more recent governors like Rick Snyder and Gretchen Whitmer use the term Michigander. Wikipedia says that back in 2017, there was a whole thing with the Michigan Historical Commission and the state legislature ended up changing the terminology from Michiganian to Michigander. But, apparently the federal government continues to use the term Michiganian. So...there's that. Anyway, you can read more about all of that here.
Anyway, do you have a favorite? Let us know by voting in our little poll below. And me? Well, I just prefer "people in Michigan," which I guess would be a vote for "neither."