A drawing of "Yankee Doodle", 1770s
Yankees are a cultural group in the northern, midwestern, and western United States, often contrasted with the Dixie culture of the American South. The name "yankee" comes from the Dutch slang term for a Dutch settler in North America, "Jan Kees" (the English name "John Cheese"); the term was later applied to the descendants of European colonists in New England, typically those of British, Dutch, Scandinavian, or Germanic descent and of the Protestant faith. By the 19th century, "Yankee" referred to anyone born above the Mason-Dixon Line, particularly the Northeast, while "Dixie" referred to their southern neighbors; people who belong to the "Northern" culture are considered to be Yankees. The divide between Yankees and Dixies was one of the causes of the American Civil War, as there was resentment between the two groups. Since then, there has continued to be a cultural divide, with the north becoming more diverse as the south remains homogenous. Today, the term "yankee" has been popularized by the tune "Yankee Doodle" and the New York baseball team, the New York Yankees.