Whoa, so only Texas and Louisiana say it right? Cool.
Once asked a News Orleans taxi driver how the name of the city was pronounced. He said tourists from outside the deep south give themselves away by saying it as NEW-OR-lee-anz. Folks from the south say new-OR-lens. Most of Louisiana says NAWL-enz. And Cajuns (with their French heritage) say it as new-or-lee-AWN.