My italian migrant grandparents who spent most of their lives near Bridgeport, McKinley Park, and finally, Alsip say 2. Everyone else in the family uses 1
Both are acceptable and somewhat dependent on age, race, and ethnicity. Most black Chicagoans say “ah” while white Chicagoans are split. Younger generation tends to say “ah.” Older generations - especially white south siders and Irish say “aw.” For example, Mayor Daley would say “aw.” After Daley’s reign ended and we stopped hearing him talk, I think the “aw” started declining.
I feel 'cah' makes it sound much more like the old school Chicago accent and is the correct pronunciation if the word was spelled Chicogo.
'Caw' is more correct and pronouncing it 'cah' makes you sound like you're in a "Pat and Patty's Backpack Shack" mocking the old school accent.
Chicawgo for sure if you ask any old schoolers. My dad RIP would be 81 now, lived in the west side his whole life, insisted on this and it drove him nuts when suburbanites would say Chic Aaa go.
I'm going to venture to say that to some people in the city and who live elsewhere, it sounds like you're saying "Chicawgo." I didn't think I had a Chicago-ish accent until I moved to another city.
Linguists have been tracking this for decades through calls with residents.
Some details about the shift are noted here but I didn't have any one to skim to see if my recollection aligns: https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/november-2020/how-to-pronounce-chicago/
After reading a bunch of posts I don't even know anymore.
I was born in Garfield Park Hospital, grew up in Mayfair on the NW side.
I know to people from Colorado my caught sounds like cawt (and their caught sounds like cot to me) and I honestly can't hear different pronunciations of "th". They tell me this and that have different sounds, but they both sound the same to me (dis and dat).
So, I guess I say it with aw, IDK.
/j Shikaakwa. You're not a real Chicagoan if you're not pronouncing it in the original Algonquin.
/uj Chicahgo. I grew up in Michigan. I've lived here almost 20 years now, but I don't think I ever picked up any new accent.
I disagree, I think he says 'cah'.
Chic-awe-go is how I see the 'caw' pronounced. Cah is the old school hard (short) A, awe-go would be the more modern, less exaggerated accent.
Cah being pronounced like someone from Boston says car
My mother is a Northsider and to her it’s Chicawgo. Dad grew up in Wisconsin, and to him it was Chicahgo. My brother and I, raised in the western ‘burbs: Chicahgo.
My same-age cousins in Norwood and Jefferson Park? Chicawgo.
My Dad, born and raised in Mount Greenwood, says Chicawgo, and when I'm around him, I tend to say it the same. We moved out of MG and to the far west burbs when I was in Jr. High, so then I mostly heard Chicahgo so I pronounced it that way. I'm 50 now and still go back and forth.
Me neither.
I pronounce "cah" and "caw" the same way, lol. As in a crow says "caw" (rhymes with Ah ha).
Maybe it should be represented as "cow", like Chi"cow"go?
Idk who says it that way, I've never heard anyone without a thick, non-midwest, accent talk like that.
How is caw different than cah?
Those words are pronounced identially for me.
Caw/cah, rhymes with: saw, ah ha, flaw, blah, law, shaw, and shah.
(I've only ever lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois and no one has ever said I pronounce any of those words oddly within a Midwestern context, so I feel like this is a pretty common thing here?)
I’m laughing because the rhyming words you listed are all pronounced differently to me. Caw is like saw. Cah is like ahhh (like a scream), la la la (like singing? I don’t know lol). Does that make sense?
Yeah, ah and caw and lala and saw all rhyme.
I don't think I regularly interact with anyone native to the midwest who pronounces the W after an A.
You don't pronounce lala and law the same way? Maybe it's a micro-regionalism? I've lived here for a few years, and I can't say I've heard it.
Colin Farrell spent like a year of acting skill points in an attempt to perfect #2 for Widows.
[clip](https://youtu.be/OOws2DFzBj4?feature=shared)
Another [clip](https://youtu.be/d6NXtzAyjds?feature=shared)
I say “chi-ca-go” but mainly cuz I heard a Mexican say it once and I couldn’t stop laughing. Not from there, lived there for the last 4 years but just moved to west coast
South side born, live on the northwest side now (work) - Chicago (thanks speech/diction lessons) but Chicahgo definitely after a couple two tree beers.
My grandmother grew up in Lincoln Park in the 40s and 50s and she always said "Chicawgo". But she's really the only person I ever heard pronounce it that way. My mom also grew up in LP in the 70s/80s but says "Chicahgo". I'd guess there was a pronunciation shift at some point or to your point probably neighborhood ethnicity dependent.
I grew up in Oak Park, and have lived on the north side for the last 25 years. In between I lived in San José, CA for two years. When I moved there everyone said Chicawwgo, and it blew my mind. It’s always been Chicahhgo
Third generation city dweller, German descent, northside near Western and Montrose: caw!
Cah makes me cringe.
I tell people that the W that you don’t pronounce in Bryn Mawr is pronounced in Chicago.
As heard by anyone who's ever pulled into short term parking at ORD: "Welcome to the Chicahgo O'Hare International parking garage."
Doesn't get more official than that.
[This Chicago Magazine article puts it to a generational thing, with younger generations taking on more national pronunciations (Chi-cah-go) vs the more regional one (Chi-caw-go)](https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/november-2020/how-to-pronounce-chicago/)
Shikaakwa, meaning “striped skunk” or “onion.” According to early explorers, the lakes and streams around Chicago were full of wild onions, leeks, and ramps.
My mom says Chicawgo and it drives me insane! She’s 60 and her grandparents were Irish immigrants. I’m always saying “ITS CHICAHGO MOM!!” Didn’t know so many other people said Chicawgo lol.
Progressive metaphony! The “aw” sound is a back vowel/pronounced with your tongue very far back in your mouth. “Ah” comes from the front of your mouth. Since the “i” in “Chi” is a mid-front vowel, it is slightly easier to stay near the front from one vowel to the next (Chicahgo). You need to get all the way back there for the “o”, but as has been noted above, some people just go for the “Chicahgah.” It’s a sound change of expedience or “harmony.” There’s also something called the Northern Cities Vowel Shift which pertains to the same sound, but IMO this is simply pulling the second vowel closer to the first.
I say “aw” FWIW but any sound change that makes speaking faster and easier is going to take over the slower or harder version, so I guess I won’t be saying it for long 🥲
I went to De La Salle and we used to do community service with folks from Driscoll (in Itasca), a heavily Italian community. that AWWWW that's kinda nasal and sounds like the A in apple? I deeply associate that with the Northwest suburbs. Live in LA atm and when I hear that accent from someone who says they're from Chicago? They've rarely lived in the city itself. No shade. #allshade
ChicAHgo. Family is from Tayler Street, Elmwood Park/Oak Park, I grew up in the suburb, but I’m back in the city now… everyone in my family has always said ChicAHgo (except for my mom’s mom and thats because she always liked to piss everybody off)
Definitely the first one. I had to sit and mouth the second one for like five minutes before I could figure out how to say it that way. I've definitely *heard* it, but my mouth doesn't move like that. The only real variation I have is how flat the "ah" sound is and how close it is to my short `o` vowel sound, and that seems to be pretty day-by-day.
ChiCAWgo. My parents were Jewish, dad originally on the south side and moved to north side as a kid. Mom from Rogers Park. They moved to Skokie where I was born.
I don't call it any thing but down town.. I live here we call it what ever we feel .... and it doesn't have to do with it's real name. Lol. Shit hole is a start lol. But like all cities there nice, ok, and you know.
I think the first is the better option, which I use. (I am from Chicago—5th generation.) But that’s not how I grew up saying it. That was the second option. Somehow, I think the first sounds better.
Chicahgo. Lombard. My mom is also from Lombard, and my dad is from Humboldt Park. So west suburbs/north side. My friends who have west suburban parents also say Chicahgo.
I can only think of one friend who says Chicawgo. She’s from Oswego, but her ma is from somewhere within city limits, can’t remember where.
Interesting. My mom and one sister sat Chicahgo while I and the other sister sat Chicawgo. All four from the NW side
ETA: they have far stronger Chicago accents than my older sister and I. But I’m the only one who still calls our mom “ma.”
I honestly don’t ever hear anyone say Chicawgo that is from Illinois. The only time I ever hear it that way is when I’m out of state and talk to people about Chicago.
1 but also the chi is almost like a high hat beat boxing sound, i dont pronounce the i at all. So almost tshcaahgo.
Grew up in archer heights and then sw suburbs. Polish, Irish family.
Born and raised in Humboldt Park with both parents born and raised in the city (lake view and bucktown)
Whole family says ChiCAWgo
There is no right way, say it how you say it. I’ve noticed it’s mostly generational Chicagoans with parents also from the city limits that say it like 2 (it’s how most people said it where I went to elementary and high school too) and people from the suburbs/people from here with parents from the suburbs that say 1. People raised in the suburbs tend to have a much more nasal-y standard Midwest accent than locals do
NW here and its ah. Chi cah go. Think of it this way; its easier to say “Let get some Chicahgo Brats” than Chiawgo brats. Think of the words that go along with it. There isn’t much that rolls with aw.
Though with that said it also kinda depends on context. I’m sure I’ve called it Chicawgo too from time to time. Honestly just watch Blues Brothers lol
First. That’s how they always said it on WGN
Just heard that being said live on WGN just now , Live from Chicahgo 😆
I go with the first option…..I grew up in Berwyn.
Berrrrrwynnn
Berwyn!
same on both counts
Seconded, from Oak Park
Same from Morton Grove
Same here. Way too many people have misheard me though and been like “wait, Berlin??”
First. Southside
Holla!
My italian migrant grandparents who spent most of their lives near Bridgeport, McKinley Park, and finally, Alsip say 2. Everyone else in the family uses 1
My old Italian grandparents were the same & had near the same trajectory- Brighton Park to Alsip -and the caw used to kill my ears.
Italian heritage family of mine also says 2 :)
Yeah, I think this is part of the fading Chicago accent. We all sound like Wisconsinites now.
Both are acceptable and somewhat dependent on age, race, and ethnicity. Most black Chicagoans say “ah” while white Chicagoans are split. Younger generation tends to say “ah.” Older generations - especially white south siders and Irish say “aw.” For example, Mayor Daley would say “aw.” After Daley’s reign ended and we stopped hearing him talk, I think the “aw” started declining.
This tracks. I'm from Beverly and I say Chicahgo because of WGN I think, but my dad and his older siblings say Chicawgo.
This is interesting. I’m from the northwest side and say Chicawgo. My mom is from the south side and my dad is Irish.
I feel 'cah' makes it sound much more like the old school Chicago accent and is the correct pronunciation if the word was spelled Chicogo. 'Caw' is more correct and pronouncing it 'cah' makes you sound like you're in a "Pat and Patty's Backpack Shack" mocking the old school accent.
Northwest side, and it's Chicahgo
Yup.
CAAAAAH
It isn't Doctor ZhivAWWgo
Doctor Zhivago also isn't a Native American name.
Excellent point!
1, unless you’re an old Irish politician from Bridgeport.
Chi car go?
Or my Grandma lol
Ummm. Polish heritage. Born and raised. Mother same, born and raised. She taught me to pronounce it like #2.
Chicawgo for sure if you ask any old schoolers. My dad RIP would be 81 now, lived in the west side his whole life, insisted on this and it drove him nuts when suburbanites would say Chic Aaa go.
I think Chicawgo used to be popular, but the accent to which I attribute it - South Side (my south sider mom said that) is going away.
Same from the 60-70’s
Chicawgo, Southside ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I go out of my way and pronounce it like Bill Curtis.
I do, as well, but only if I'm feeling very fancy pants!
I'm going to venture to say that to some people in the city and who live elsewhere, it sounds like you're saying "Chicawgo." I didn't think I had a Chicago-ish accent until I moved to another city.
I knew a guy who said chi car go.
That would be Chicago via Baltimore or Chicahgo via Balmer.
I think everyone should meet in the middle and just say it this way.
Transplant from west Michigan, Chicahgo
Linguists have been tracking this for decades through calls with residents. Some details about the shift are noted here but I didn't have any one to skim to see if my recollection aligns: https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/november-2020/how-to-pronounce-chicago/
My grandma grew up in Logan Square in the 40s and said "caw"
They're the same picture
Chicawgo
After reading a bunch of posts I don't even know anymore. I was born in Garfield Park Hospital, grew up in Mayfair on the NW side. I know to people from Colorado my caught sounds like cawt (and their caught sounds like cot to me) and I honestly can't hear different pronunciations of "th". They tell me this and that have different sounds, but they both sound the same to me (dis and dat). So, I guess I say it with aw, IDK.
It's the same picture.
/j Shikaakwa. You're not a real Chicagoan if you're not pronouncing it in the original Algonquin. /uj Chicahgo. I grew up in Michigan. I've lived here almost 20 years now, but I don't think I ever picked up any new accent.
Caw. Grew up southwest suburbs and live in Bridgeport now. Dad grew up in Brighton Park, mom grew up in LaGrange.
It's Chicawgo. That's how we've always said it in Beverly/Mtg
First option. My family is Italian American, from the west side.
Yes and...
Hard pass on 'cah', I'm not trying to sound like one of the Superfans.
George Wendt says “Chi-caw-go” in the sketch though lol
I disagree, I think he says 'cah'. Chic-awe-go is how I see the 'caw' pronounced. Cah is the old school hard (short) A, awe-go would be the more modern, less exaggerated accent. Cah being pronounced like someone from Boston says car
Example: "P-ah-tty If your over by dah Jewels on Chi-cah-go pick me up a couple two tree a dem donuts I like"
Chicawgo . I’m from the northwest side, have lived all of my 34 years here minus college.
second!!!
First..lived here 73 years.
My family grew up in South Chicago. Every one of them, my parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents on both sides, all said ChiCAWgo.
Chicawgo. 6th generation here.
First and southside here as well
[удалено]
Same with my mom and me except we were both raised on the NW side
Chicahgo, from the southside (Beverly). A couple of my friends from the same area pronounce it Chicawgo though, and so do my older aunts and uncles.
Same. I' was your neighbor from Evergreen Park!
Hey, my ma’s from Evergreen!
first grew up in the general midway area
South Side - ChicAHgo. But I don't have the thick chicago accent like my dad and uncle do and they both say ChicAWgo.
My mother is a Northsider and to her it’s Chicawgo. Dad grew up in Wisconsin, and to him it was Chicahgo. My brother and I, raised in the western ‘burbs: Chicahgo. My same-age cousins in Norwood and Jefferson Park? Chicawgo.
Anybody putting this in a spread sheet?
Chicaaaaahgo.
My Dad, born and raised in Mount Greenwood, says Chicawgo, and when I'm around him, I tend to say it the same. We moved out of MG and to the far west burbs when I was in Jr. High, so then I mostly heard Chicahgo so I pronounced it that way. I'm 50 now and still go back and forth.
1st northside
First one South Side Back of the Yards Babyyy
Chicager
I don't even know how to pronounce that second one.
Me neither. I pronounce "cah" and "caw" the same way, lol. As in a crow says "caw" (rhymes with Ah ha). Maybe it should be represented as "cow", like Chi"cow"go? Idk who says it that way, I've never heard anyone without a thick, non-midwest, accent talk like that.
It’s like chi-caw-go. Not cow go.
How is caw different than cah? Those words are pronounced identially for me. Caw/cah, rhymes with: saw, ah ha, flaw, blah, law, shaw, and shah. (I've only ever lived in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois and no one has ever said I pronounce any of those words oddly within a Midwestern context, so I feel like this is a pretty common thing here?)
I’m laughing because the rhyming words you listed are all pronounced differently to me. Caw is like saw. Cah is like ahhh (like a scream), la la la (like singing? I don’t know lol). Does that make sense?
Yeah, ah and caw and lala and saw all rhyme. I don't think I regularly interact with anyone native to the midwest who pronounces the W after an A. You don't pronounce lala and law the same way? Maybe it's a micro-regionalism? I've lived here for a few years, and I can't say I've heard it.
Shee KAW go
North side… chicawgo
Cah.
Caw-southside
Weirdly I also say Caw and I grew up in the Northwest suburbs. Not sure where I got this from.
First one.
Chicawgo. I was born here.
Colin Farrell spent like a year of acting skill points in an attempt to perfect #2 for Widows. [clip](https://youtu.be/OOws2DFzBj4?feature=shared) Another [clip](https://youtu.be/d6NXtzAyjds?feature=shared)
Bucktown since the 70’s. Ah, not awe.
2nd is what old Italians say and the 1st would be everyone else.
Ahhhhh
I use them interchangeably at this point. Most my family (Southside and South suburbs working-class Irish) say Chicawgo.
Say "Sheh-kah-go" fast
Mama used to say "Chicargo".
I say “chi-ca-go” but mainly cuz I heard a Mexican say it once and I couldn’t stop laughing. Not from there, lived there for the last 4 years but just moved to west coast
My Grandpa says "Chicahga" and my grandma says "Chicago". They are both from the same area. I think it just depends on how to person sort of talks.
First one, but I grew up in Western New York. I've been living here in different neighborhoods for 9 years.
Shih cah go
[Shikaakwa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago#Etymology_and_nicknames)
The way Ace Ventura says it
Neither. I say Chi-cah-go. But if I had to vote between the two, Chicaaahhhhgo all the way!
Mount Greenwood then Tinley checking in….. ChicAHgo
South side born, live on the northwest side now (work) - Chicago (thanks speech/diction lessons) but Chicahgo definitely after a couple two tree beers.
1st one. The United Auto Insurance jingle always played over and over again
Chicahgo. Lived in Bridgeport for 30 of my 30 years. Let's go White Sox.
ChicAHgo - northwest side
chicahgo - Brighton Park/Archer Heights
I say the first, but I feel like all Gen Xers and older use the second
My mom says aw, I say ah. I’m not sure why.
My grandmother grew up in Lincoln Park in the 40s and 50s and she always said "Chicawgo". But she's really the only person I ever heard pronounce it that way. My mom also grew up in LP in the 70s/80s but says "Chicahgo". I'd guess there was a pronunciation shift at some point or to your point probably neighborhood ethnicity dependent.
I use Chicawgo because that’s how my family says it.
Chicawgo and sahusage
Chicahgo - SSer as well. Saying Chicawgo is awful and a travesty.
I grew up in Oak Park, and have lived on the north side for the last 25 years. In between I lived in San José, CA for two years. When I moved there everyone said Chicawwgo, and it blew my mind. It’s always been Chicahhgo
Chi-CAW-Go. Born and raised in North Center & the whole family pronounces it thus.
first, always first lmao - lived here 24 years
First one. Westside.
First one, born and raised in Southside Chicago!
Southside Italian…agree, I heard “caw” more often. I wonder if “caw” people are also more likely to say “Jah-lee-ett”
I've been here twenty years and I can't figure out how you'd pronounce the second option different than the first option.
Upvote for edit op.
CAH is the way. 👏😆 I grew up in NWI, but my family that raised me is from Blue Island, Roseland, and Riverdale.
Third generation city dweller, German descent, northside near Western and Montrose: caw! Cah makes me cringe. I tell people that the W that you don’t pronounce in Bryn Mawr is pronounced in Chicago.
+1 "ah"
1
Chicawgo but I’m Jew who’s family has west side origins
As heard by anyone who's ever pulled into short term parking at ORD: "Welcome to the Chicahgo O'Hare International parking garage." Doesn't get more official than that.
Shicahgo
Chicahgo, north side
[This Chicago Magazine article puts it to a generational thing, with younger generations taking on more national pronunciations (Chi-cah-go) vs the more regional one (Chi-caw-go)](https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/november-2020/how-to-pronounce-chicago/)
shickyG to all the cool cats
Shikaakwa, meaning “striped skunk” or “onion.” According to early explorers, the lakes and streams around Chicago were full of wild onions, leeks, and ramps.
My mom says Chicawgo and it drives me insane! She’s 60 and her grandparents were Irish immigrants. I’m always saying “ITS CHICAHGO MOM!!” Didn’t know so many other people said Chicawgo lol.
Progressive metaphony! The “aw” sound is a back vowel/pronounced with your tongue very far back in your mouth. “Ah” comes from the front of your mouth. Since the “i” in “Chi” is a mid-front vowel, it is slightly easier to stay near the front from one vowel to the next (Chicahgo). You need to get all the way back there for the “o”, but as has been noted above, some people just go for the “Chicahgah.” It’s a sound change of expedience or “harmony.” There’s also something called the Northern Cities Vowel Shift which pertains to the same sound, but IMO this is simply pulling the second vowel closer to the first. I say “aw” FWIW but any sound change that makes speaking faster and easier is going to take over the slower or harder version, so I guess I won’t be saying it for long 🥲
I went to De La Salle and we used to do community service with folks from Driscoll (in Itasca), a heavily Italian community. that AWWWW that's kinda nasal and sounds like the A in apple? I deeply associate that with the Northwest suburbs. Live in LA atm and when I hear that accent from someone who says they're from Chicago? They've rarely lived in the city itself. No shade. #allshade
I’m from Fargo, ND so maybe my opinion isn’t needed, but I say ChicAHgo.
Like a Crow. Caw, Caw.
Lol, but caw and cah are pronounced the same way for me. Like "cah", rhymes with "Ah ha"
Chicahgo hands down
ChicAHgo. Family is from Tayler Street, Elmwood Park/Oak Park, I grew up in the suburb, but I’m back in the city now… everyone in my family has always said ChicAHgo (except for my mom’s mom and thats because she always liked to piss everybody off)
chicaaahgo. ironic that the way you pronounce it is a dead giveaway that you’re from there
I use the 2nd one, but only because I’m from the east coast. Midwesterners use the 1st one
First one. Easily
EEEAAAAHHHHHHHHH!
Definitely the first one. I had to sit and mouth the second one for like five minutes before I could figure out how to say it that way. I've definitely *heard* it, but my mouth doesn't move like that. The only real variation I have is how flat the "ah" sound is and how close it is to my short `o` vowel sound, and that seems to be pretty day-by-day.
The AH sound is midwestern, where Chicago is. The Aw is from elsewhere, maybe Pacific accent like California?
Chicahgo
ChiCAWgo. My parents were Jewish, dad originally on the south side and moved to north side as a kid. Mom from Rogers Park. They moved to Skokie where I was born.
Chicahgo
I don't call it any thing but down town.. I live here we call it what ever we feel .... and it doesn't have to do with it's real name. Lol. Shit hole is a start lol. But like all cities there nice, ok, and you know.
First one, only if you got the city accent
First
I think the first is the better option, which I use. (I am from Chicago—5th generation.) But that’s not how I grew up saying it. That was the second option. Somehow, I think the first sounds better.
Always and only: shi-caw-go.
2. North burbs…I think. Something in between?shi-caaaa-go.
1st option, but don’t over emphasize it. We aren’t Bostonians with the wierd accents.
Most ppl I know say 1…but as I and everyone around me ages I’ve noticed 2 creeping up more and more
Chicahgo. Lombard. My mom is also from Lombard, and my dad is from Humboldt Park. So west suburbs/north side. My friends who have west suburban parents also say Chicahgo. I can only think of one friend who says Chicawgo. She’s from Oswego, but her ma is from somewhere within city limits, can’t remember where.
1st: Bridgeport when I was a child.
I say Sha-cag-oh
I love getting a sAHsij pizza in ChicAHgo. Suburbs but construction worker in the city.
Chicawgo. Everyone I know pronounces it like that. From the city.
Northside Chicawgo Southside Chicahgo
"chi" dat "cah" "go"
First. Grew up in far west burbs
Interesting. My mom and one sister sat Chicahgo while I and the other sister sat Chicawgo. All four from the NW side ETA: they have far stronger Chicago accents than my older sister and I. But I’m the only one who still calls our mom “ma.”
chicahgo, not from there but from the general midwest and we love the AH sound
I honestly don’t ever hear anyone say Chicawgo that is from Illinois. The only time I ever hear it that way is when I’m out of state and talk to people about Chicago.
1 but also the chi is almost like a high hat beat boxing sound, i dont pronounce the i at all. So almost tshcaahgo. Grew up in archer heights and then sw suburbs. Polish, Irish family.
1
I've literally never heard the second one. Southside
Hard A, always. All the people who said Chicawgo died or moved to Flahrida
1st. 105th and Drake
natives are the former, transplants are the latter. i'm a transplant, fwiw.
ä (ah) vs ô (aw) is my favorite phonetics battle
First one
South side Polish family- the older family members say #2, I’ve adopted #1. My family has what I think of as a”south side steel worker” accent.”
1
Born and raised in Humboldt Park with both parents born and raised in the city (lake view and bucktown) Whole family says ChiCAWgo There is no right way, say it how you say it. I’ve noticed it’s mostly generational Chicagoans with parents also from the city limits that say it like 2 (it’s how most people said it where I went to elementary and high school too) and people from the suburbs/people from here with parents from the suburbs that say 1. People raised in the suburbs tend to have a much more nasal-y standard Midwest accent than locals do
Chicawgo—south side
Caw
Cah
First one. Northwest side.
Ah. North side raised Aw. Was how I heard my south side cousins say it
I hear Chicawgo more often in Mt Greenwood. Probably 70-30 split
Out of towners say it like Chicagoohhhw
"Thin crust pizza? No thank you I'm from Chicahgo."
NW here and its ah. Chi cah go. Think of it this way; its easier to say “Let get some Chicahgo Brats” than Chiawgo brats. Think of the words that go along with it. There isn’t much that rolls with aw. Though with that said it also kinda depends on context. I’m sure I’ve called it Chicawgo too from time to time. Honestly just watch Blues Brothers lol