Mapping Perceptions Diachronically: A Restudy of Mental Maps in Michigan

This research takes a diachronic approach to perceptual dialectology and uses data collected in 2016–17 to replicate work done in Michigan in 1985–87 by Dennis Preston to examine possible changes in perceptions. The frequency of identification of regions and their spatial distributions were analyzed in 148 newly collected hand-drawn maps. The rates of regional identification in these are generally similar to the earlier ones, with the exception of increases of over 10% for three of the 14 regions and decreases of more than 10% for two others. GIS analysis of the five most frequently identified regions showed that the South and Northeast are larger in the newer work, while the North, Plains and Mountains, and West are similar to the earlier study. These findings allow questions about the factors that influence change in perceptions over time and address a gap in diachronic studies in perceptual dialectology.