Why don't they call Ohio mideast instead of midwest?

Answer 1

Ohio used to be the west. If you were going to Ohio, you were going west. That was pretty much the end of civilization in the U.S. until the 1840's. After that, when people started heavily populating the real west, west of the Ohio and MIssissippi rivers, folks decided to call Ohio the MID west instead of the west and it has stuck until today.

Actually, it was a fairly gradual change until finally there came a generation in the late 1800's and early 1900's that simply used midwest to describe the middle part of the U.S. instead of calling it the west.

Seems a more appropriate nomenclature today would be middle America or central America (like Central Time Zone)

Answer 2

That's a really good question I've wondered myself. Maybe it goes back to the pioneering days when travelers landing in eastern ports would start to travel west ward. If they were going all the way to the west coast they may have considered Ohio a mid-west state. I'm really stretching, I know. Just a guess.

Answer 3

I assumed that Americans/Europeans are so obsessed with the word "WEST", when I had the same doubt. You know sometimes Israel is also added into the league of western countries while the rest of the Arabian Peninsula nations are called middle east.

No clear reason with so far I have researched.

Answer 4

I'm from Colorado and we certainly don't call Ohio midwest. You guys are easterners to us.

Answer 5

i have no idea why they call ohio in the midwest....we arn't in the midwest part of the country we are just there....lol...we are more in the east than in the west anyways......i guess someone called it west and now we are stuck with it.

Answer 6

it is not exactly on the coast but not exactly the center of the us either. having been there it feels more midwest than east so this may be why most people refer to it that way

Answer 7

yeah I've always wondered that too .... Ohio is the farthest east of the midwestern states, but still, it's hardly midwest lol

Answer 8

Progressive

Answer 9

Because people who coind the term were living on Eastern coasr -the original colonies -the 'Mid-East' as in Arab world was not even coined then.

Answer 10

because the 'west' was considered anything west of the mississippi, and ohio and surrounding areas are mid way between california and the mississippi.