downstateadj.n.adv.
/ˌdaʊnˈsteɪt/, U.S. /ˈdaʊnˌsteɪt/ Chiefly U.S.
A. adj.
Of, relating to, or characteristic of a part of a state that is more southern or low-lying than another, or is more remote from a chief metropolitan centre; spec. (a) designating the southern part of Illinois as contrasted with Chicago; (b) designating the southern portion of New York State, including New York City, Hudson Valley, and Long Island. Cf. upstate adj.
ΚΠ
1888 Times (Philadelphia) 1 July 14/6 James Pennewill and D. J. Layton, down-State representatives to the Chicago Convention, have returned home.
1910 Sun (Baltimore) 16 May 7/2 One girl came to Chicago from down-State Illinois and began to make garments.
1942 Amer. Speech 17 30 (heading) Pronunciation in downstate New York.
1970 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 25 Sept. 1/1 The New York Telephone Co., for the second day, turned on its 250 emergency generators in the downstate area.
2013 N.Y. Mag. 14 Jan. 20/2 He led a successful push to..end ‘prison gerrymandering’, which counted inmates as local residents upstate and weakened downstate Democratic districts.
B. n.
A part of a state that is more southern or low-lying than another, or is more remote from a chief metropolitan centre, esp. the southern part of Illinois as contrasted with Chicago. Cf. upstate n.Used in various regions with varying local significance.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > a land or country > part of country or district > [noun] > remote or outlying area
nookc1480
out-country1639
outland1645
remoteness1694
backwoods1709
back county1775
remote1838
Mountains of the Moon1852
nowhere1871
the sticks1899
way back1901
downstate1905
back o' Bourke1918
far-back1926
woop woop1926
boohai?1946
bundu1946
Dogpatch1946
outback1954
toolies1961
upstate1965
Watford1973
1905 Indianapolis Sun 21 Mar. 10/4 Two young men from downstate went into the Oneida hotel barber shop the other afternoon.
1909 Daily Maroon (Chicago) 2 Oct. 1/4 Springer, a husky full-back from down-state.
1949 Economist 29 Jan. 193/1 The political split between urban Chicago and rural ‘downstate’ was less evident than usual.
2005 S. Amick Lake, River & Other Lake xxxii. 131 Bear's wife made great pasties, being from the U.P., and Kurt wondered sometimes if that's where he himself made a major mistake, marrying a woman from downstate rather than farther north.
2014 Epoch Times (N.Y.) 6 Nov. a4/4 Republicans made the mayor a political target, warning voters of what they said was outsize influence from downstate.
C. adv.
In or towards the downstate area; towards the south of a state or away from its chief metropolitan centre.
ΚΠ
1911 Indianapolis Sunday Star 11 May 3/1 (headline) Pastimers..travel down state for contests with De Pauw and Wabath Nines.
1932 W. Faulkner Light in August iii. 58 She had gone to visit her people downstate.
1981 Washington Post 9 Feb. a20/3 You can drive downstate and buy firearms over the counter as fast as you can buy apples.
2008 S. Venkatesh Gang Leader for Day iii. 94 The highest-ranking BK leaders met downstate every few months.
Derivatives
downˈstater n. an inhabitant of a downstate area; spec. (a) an inhabitant of the southern part of Illinois as contrasted with Chicago; (b) an inhabitant of the southern portion of New York State, including New York City, Hudson Valley, and Long Island.
ΚΠ
1906 Alton (Illinois) Evening Tel. 13 Apr. No down-stater will be disposed to believe that the gang will permit the passage of the bill.
1947 Chicago Tribune 22 June ii. 5/6 I have had a great many letters from downstaters who want to correct the faults.
1980 Irish Times 4 July 10/2 Chicago..is considered by ‘downstaters’ to be a violent and corrupt megalopolis.
2010 New Yorker 15 Mar. 58/3 The club was founded, in 1895..as a place for clean-living downstaters to breathe the mountain air.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.adv.1888