Cajun

The Cajuns are an ethnic group consisting essentially of the descendants of Acadians who came from Nova Scotia to Louisiana as a result of their refusal to swear allegiance to the British Crown. The word "Cajun" is an Anglophone corruption of the French pronunciation of the word acadien, after Acadia, the name of their ancestral region in Nova Scotia; the name "Cajun" was applied to them by English-speaking colonists when they settled in Louisiana.

History

The people who were to become the Cajuns were evicted from Nova Scotia in the period 1755 - 1763; this has become known as the Great Upheaval or Le Grand Dérangement. At the time there was a war going on in what is now Canada between France and Great Britain over the colony of New France. This war is known in the United States as the French and Indian War, though it is generally considered only one theater of the Seven Years' War.

Related Topics:
1755 - 1763 - Great Upheaval - Canada - France - Great Britain - New France - French and Indian War - Seven Years' War

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Originally French settlers, the Acadians found themselves under British rule at the conclusion of Queen Anne's War in 1713. When war flared up four decades later, they refused to swear allegiance to Britain, wanting nothing to do with the war and wishing to remain neutral. Fears remained among the British that the Acadians might join the French in the war, and the authorities of the colony expelled those Acadians who refused to swear allegiance. The British Crown would apologize for this act centuries later, in December 2003.

Related Topics:
Queen Anne's War - 1713 - Crown - 2003

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The Acadians were scattered throughout the eastern seaboard (where some became slaves in British colonies), the Caribbean, and Europe. Families were split onto different ships with different destinations. Many ended up in French-colonized Louisiana, mainly in the south. France ceded the colony to Spain in 1762 just before Acadians began settling in Louisiana. The interim French officials provided land and supplies. The Spanish later proved to be hospitable, permitting the Acadians to continue to speak their language, practice Roman Catholicism (which was the Spanish official religion anyway) and otherwise pursue their livelihoods with minimal interference. Some families and individuals did travel north through the Louisiana territory to set up homes as far north as Wisconsin.

Related Topics:
Caribbean - Europe - French-colonized - Spain in 1762 - Roman Catholicism - Wisconsin

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The Cajuns who settled in southern Louisiana originally did so in the area just west of what is now New Orleans, mainly along the Mississippi River. Later, they were moved by the colonial government to areas west and southwest of New Orleans where they shared the swamps and prairies with the Attakapa and Chitimacha Native American tribes. There they remained somewhat secluded until the early 1900's.

Related Topics:
Native American - 1900's

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During the early part of the 20th century, attempts were made to suppress Cajun culture by measures such as forbidding the use of French in schools. Attitudes changed after World War II, during which Cajuns often served as French interpreters for American forces in France. These experiences have helped change attitudes as the century progressed.

Related Topics:
20th century - World War II

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The Cajun regions were among the hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005.

Related Topics:
Hurricane Katrina - August 29 - 2005

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