Things to do / Travel Guide
Northern Lower Peninsula
Most of the towns in the northern Lower Peninsula have populations of less than 5,000 people. Cheboygan and Petoskey are slightly larger than this, and Traverse City is one of the region's biggest urban areas with a population of approximately 30,000 people. The great majority of northern Michigan's current population is identified as Caucasian, primarily of German, Polish and British descent. English is the language spoken by the vast majority of the residents.
Until the 19th century, Northern Michigan was mostly inhabited by the Ojibwe (also known as Chippewa) Native American tribes. The Ojibwe language is usually considered a part of the Algonquian language group and is still spoken by tribal members today. The Odawa Indians, or Ottawa People, inhabited much of northern Michigan, including the Straits of Mackinac and the Leelanau Peninsula. Close to 50,000 Native Americans live in Michigan today, but a very small percentage of these communities actually live on reservations. Federally recognized tribes can be found in and around Little Traverse Bay, Suttons Bay, Petoskey, Manistee, among other locations.
Upper Peninsula
The Upper Peninsula (U.P.) is decidedly rural. A little more than 90,000 people are spread between twelve of the larger towns. Another 115,000 people are distributed between about twenty towns of around 2,000 people each. A significant portion of the U.P.'s territory remains unpopulated, particularly Isle Royale.
There are still many active Native American communities and tribal reservations in the U.P. Among these are the Chippewa of Sault Ste. Marie, and the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community of L'Anse Reservation.
Most of the Europeans who settled the Upper Peninsula immigrated from Germany, Sweden, and Finland. In fact, the U.P. has the highest concentration in the world of Finns outside of Europe, and the only Finnish-language television broadcast outside of Finland.
People from the U.P. generally speak what is commonly referred to as the “Yooper dialect,” a version of English greatly influenced by the Flemish and Finnish languages. Yooper is also peppered with Scandinavian and Canadian phrases and inflections. Linguists refer to the dialect of this region as North Central American English.
Northern Michigan does not have the typical feel of a tourist trap. While in the summer months the populations of the beachside towns often swell to sometimes 10-times their normal size, the atmosphere usually retains an authentic feel. Mackinaw City and downtown Mackinac Island are, perhaps, the exceptions to this rule, as these areas do clearly cater to tourist crowds.
The Michiganders themselves, on the other hand, are known to be friendly and down-to-earth. Michiganders are proud of the natural beauty of their state's northern region, and they enjoy it to the fullest year-round. Like the region's tourists, Michiganders are usually fans of the great outdoors. Boating, fishing, and paddling are popular recreational activities in the summer; and snowmobiling, cross-country and downhill skiing, and sledding are typical winter hobbies.
The people of the Upper Peninsula often differentiate themselves from those living in the northern Lower Peninsula. Residents colloquially refer to themselves as “Yoopers” (in other words, “U.P.-ers”) and light-heartedly tease the Lower Peninsula residents, calling them “trolls who live under da Mackinac Bridge.” Most people will find the kind, practical nature of the Yoopers refreshing and their accents and colloquialisms interesting, if not endearing.
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