Cajun
Louisiana
We can say with pride that it
was the Acadiana families that made Louisiana Territory what it was. They were
hard working, land loving, stable Acadian families that made the territory a
stable and prosperous Colony. For more than a hundred years their lives
remained almost unchanged. The Acadians raised large families and preserved
their French language, traditions and culture. The Acadians had always lived
near the Sea but now they were spread out all over south Louisiana. Their
French language was inadequate in this area. There were all this new
vegetation and wild animals they had never seen or heard of before. They had
to develop a new vocabulary for all the things that touched their daily lives.
They used words that may have heard from Indians or Spaniards or maybe the way
something looked reminded of a French word. The Acadians put all this together
and a new language and culture was born. After many years the word Acadian was
shortened to "CAJUN". They used their new language and culture while
preserving their Acadian memories. The first public schools for Cajuns was
establish in 1875, but compulsory education was not adopted until 1922.
From 1930 to 1960 no French or Cajun speaking was allowed on public
school grounds in Louisiana. The French and Cajun language did not return to
Louisiana schools till 1968. The establishment of "Le Conseil pour
le Development de Francais en Louisiane" (CODOFIL) brought French back to
the Louisiana schools.
It just might have been too late to save the language.
However, to
Cajun Music
"Que le bon Dieu vous benit"
May the good Lord bless you
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