"Where do you live?" "Oh we're in North Arlington"

[Anonymous]

I'm in south Arlington, and while it could be boastful, I wouldn't automatically assume that. I have probably said that I live in South Arlington under similar circumstances, and obviously I'm not boasting.

[Anonymous]

I think it’s boastful. I have lived in both North and S South Arlington. Just hop on over to APS threads about good schools etc

[Anonymous]

I live in North Arlington and I typically use the descriptive “on the Falls Church border” when it is helpful.

I typically do not use any geographic clarification unless it’s relevant- like you are coming to visit me, asking about my commute, or recommending restaurants to me. If I say I live in Arlington and someone starts telling me about something in McLean / Great Falls or Alexandria / Old Town, it is sometimes helpful to clarify that those locations are not local or convenient to me.

[Anonymous]

I live in South Arlington and I will usually tell people that who ask me. It conveys a lot of information - first it conveys which high school my kids are zoned for; it lets people know that I am way closer to Alexandria than I am to McLean; and its just a general locational descriptor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No. I'm in the DC area and I am not aware that North Arlington is more or less nice than other locations in Arlington.

Ha – that tells me you don’t know Arlington though

DP. Exactly. I live in close-in MD and “North Arlington” means nothing to me, either, except something vague about the missing middle. So I’m answer to OP’s question, people who use that phrase may think they’re conveying something, but for the most part they’re not.

You wouldn’t think they are referring to the northern portion of Arlington?

Missing middle has nothing to do with N v S Arlington.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Assume the person asking also lives in the DMV and is thus familiar with the area. Is specifying North Arlington unnecessarily boastful or merely descriptive?

Help me settle a debate on the topic.

Who is having the debate?

My own hunch is whoever thinks this is boastful is deeply insecure because that is a really strange lens through which to look at this comment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I mean, isn’t it like saying Northern Virginia?

This. And I live in South Arlington. This wouldn't concern me really at all.

[Anonymous]

It's unnecessarily boastful for sure.

[Anonymous]

If the person you're telling is familiar with the area, then North Arlington makes sense. In the same way you'd tell a local you live in Dupont (instead of saying DC). Not boastful. There are very few ways to describe where you're from in Arlington to a local. It's pretty much North or South.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in N Arlington and would never say this. Yes, it's very loaded. Saying either Arlington or N Arlington are too vague to be all that helpful. Both cover pretty large areas. If someone actually cares and asks after I say I live in Arlington, I would drill down on more specific neighborhoods or say something like - near the East Falls Church metro.

This

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Assume the person asking also lives in the DMV and is thus familiar with the area. Is specifying North Arlington unnecessarily boastful or merely descriptive?

Help me settle a debate on the topic.

Who is having the debate?

My own hunch is whoever thinks this is boastful is deeply insecure because that is a really strange lens through which to look at this comment.

Ha disagree. Do you know people who live in North Arlington? Many are really snobby and uptight, and have hangups about status. I wouldn't assume the comment is boastful but it very well could be. There just really is no way to know. And I'm not insecure (in that way, I'm insecure about other things).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If the person you're telling is familiar with the area, then North Arlington makes sense. In the same way you'd tell a local you live in Dupont (instead of saying DC). Not boastful. There are very few ways to describe where you're from in Arlington to a local. It's pretty much North or South.

I've lived in Arlington for 20+ years and I never say North Arlington. To me, that's a really wide range - as someone said above, it could be Rosslyn and it could be Rock Spring. If someone is familiar with the area, I say I live in Arlington, about a mile from Ballston or near the Lee Heights shops if I want to get really specific. Saying North or South Arlington is pretty much as vague as just saying Arlington - the county is not that big that you really need to differentiate unless it's the specific neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Assume the person asking also lives in the DMV and is thus familiar with the area. Is specifying North Arlington unnecessarily boastful or merely descriptive?

Help me settle a debate on the topic.

Who is having the debate?

My own hunch is whoever thinks this is boastful is deeply insecure because that is a really strange lens through which to look at this comment.

Ha disagree. Do you know people who live in North Arlington? Many are really snobby and uptight, and have hangups about status. I wouldn't assume the comment is boastful but it very well could be. There just really is no way to know. And I'm not insecure (in that way, I'm insecure about other things).

I need to add a disclaimer that many others in North Arlington are *not* like this. I'm in South Arlington and I'd say only about half my interactions with N Arlington folks have weird vibes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in N Arlington and would never say this. Yes, it's very loaded. Saying either Arlington or N Arlington are too vague to be all that helpful. Both cover pretty large areas. If someone actually cares and asks after I say I live in Arlington, I would drill down on more specific neighborhoods or say something like - near the East Falls Church metro.

This

As OP, this is why I asked. It's really interesting to see the split between "totally innocuous" and "naw, loaded usage".

[Anonymous]

Distinguishing ‘North Arlington’ informs potential out of area buyers that the North Arlington homes are not constructed with bathroom exhaust fans.