NEW ENGLAND. The name of the six north-easternmost states of the US (Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island); the site of the second oldest permanent English settlement on the North American mainland. The New England colonies were populated by Puritans mainly from EAST ANGLIA, who came to the New World primarily for religious reasons. Because of their predominantly common origin and cultural unity, the New England settlers formed a more homogeneous community than did colonists elsewhere.

The Puritan inheritance

The character of the colonists was early famed for its seriousness, emphasis on the work ethic, and a social consciousness that sprang from the scriptural injunction to charity; this was, however, often expressed as a tendency to enforce their view of what is good on those who did not share it. The conflict between Puritanism and pleasure can be seen in much of American social life to the present day. New England has served as the school-house and conscience of the US. One of its most famous sons, Noah WEBSTER, was a force in shaping the DICTIONARY and school-book tradition of the country; his name has entered the lore of the nation as a synonym for dictionaries.

Linguistic features

The terms applied popularly to present-day New England speech are often the same as those used in the 17c to characterize the language of the English Puritans: a NASAL TWANG, high-pitched, harsh, and unmusical. In fact, however, New England is divided between two rather different DIALECTS: Eastern New England, with Boston as its hub, and Western New England, which blends into upper New York State as the wellspring of the Inland Northern dialect that sweeps across the northern tier of states to the Pacific. One of the defining characteristics of these two dialects is their treatment of r when not followed by a vowel. Eastern New England is non-rhotic, articulating it much as British RP does, with a gliding vowel. Western New England, on the other hand, is RHOTIC, as is most of the US. See DIALECT (AMERICA).