“I’m from a small town right outside of Washington D.C.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are no small towns right outside of Washington D.C. They're all large suburbs, Leesburg included. And as someone correctly pointed out, Leesburg and other areas near there are not "right outside of."

Technically Town of Kensington is right outside of DC. And it probably meets most definitions of “small town” unless you really mean rural.

I grew up in a “small town” in Jersey population 10,000. But it didn’t feel like it because it was part of the metro NYC area. Except for schools which there are by town so I went to school with mostly the same kids from K-12. In my high school class of 200 I didn’t know 5 kids (I counted at graduation 😂).

All that to say the definition of small town is both technical (population, government structure) and subjective (area, distance from city, feeling, etc.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of options, and people have different definitions of "small" and "right outside" so if someone said that, I would explain I'm from the DC area, and what town is it?

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Depends on who I'm talking to.

I live in a small town about 1.5 hours from DC metro. If I'm in Virginia, I say the name of the town. If I'm in a different part of the US, I say I'm from Virginia. If asked what part, I say the central part.

If I'm traveling internationally, we say we're from the US. If pressed further, we say a small town outside of Washington DC (because that's a recognizable city to the global audience).

Exactly. I grew up in NJ an hour from NYC. I would say something like "a small town near NYC" if I were in another country but the affiliation would seem silly / try-hard otherwise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where do you assume this person is from? What is the first town that comes to mind?

The Pentagon for sure.

[Anonymous]

On the Virginia side, I’d go with Herndon or Vienna (actually towns, not exactly small), or Falls Church (which is a city and not a town, but a very small one such that their moniker is “the little city”).

[Anonymous]

Baltimore

[Anonymous]

OP have you been watching Southern Charm haha? One of the cast members this season says this exact statement and follows up with “called Great Falls”.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP have you been watching Southern Charm haha? One of the cast members this season says this exact statement and follows up with “called Great Falls”.

LOL. NP here. I was wondering! My first thoughts were Oakton/Vienna. I find that people from the DC area tend to like to think that where someone else is from is either podunk or cosmopolitan, there is no in between, especially if they do not travel much within the U.S., or have not lived near any other major cities in the U.S. Tunnel vision, it seems!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are no small towns right outside of Washington D.C. They're all large suburbs, Leesburg included. And as someone correctly pointed out, Leesburg and other areas near there are not "right outside of."

What about the Town of Chevy Chase and the Town of Somerset?

[Anonymous]

was this a hypothetical or is there a real person?

I want to know the answer!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Old Town Alexandria.

That would be ridiculous. Alexandria is the 3rd most populous city in the DC area.

Perhaps, but Old Town does have a small town feel. There are no small towns right outside of DC. The people that think so, think that Ashburn is part of the metro area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leesburg? Frederick? I don't consider any of the close-in cities like Arlington or Takoma Park small towns, and I don't know anyone who would.

Arlington isn't a city. It's a county.

Alexandria is a city.

Neither are "towns."

I think you're being a bit pedantic here. Someone is having a conversation, not a geography quiz.

Not really. "Town" has a specific meaning. And it isn't synonymous with "city" or "county." Although a town can be a locality within a county. But not a city. A city has a specific destination.

Is Fairfax City a town or a city? What about Leesburg? People here call it a town, but it has twice the population of Fairfax

Fairfax is a city.
Leesburg is a town.

The classification is not population-based. Did you really not understand that? It has to do with incorporation.

Do you not understand that the definition, your term, is population based?

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/town

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/city

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:AU Park.

LOL You are asking for trouble.

I would think Falls Church.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Purcellville, Leesburg, Frederick, Fredericksburg, Owings Mills, Lorton, etc.

Those are not "right outside of"

They are if you're talking to someone from Des Moines.

+1

Fredericksburg was the first thing that came to my mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are no small towns right outside of Washington D.C. They're all large suburbs, Leesburg included. And as someone correctly pointed out, Leesburg and other areas near there are not "right outside of."

Technically Town of Kensington is right outside of DC. And it probably meets most definitions of “small town” unless you really mean rural.

I grew up in a “small town” in Jersey population 10,000. But it didn’t feel like it because it was part of the metro NYC area. Except for schools which there are by town so I went to school with mostly the same kids from K-12. In my high school class of 200 I didn’t know 5 kids (I counted at graduation 😂).

All that to say the definition of small town is both technical (population, government structure) and subjective (area, distance from city, feeling, etc.)

Kensington also came to mind for me. I have heard people use this description for Kensington.