Louisiana Trails To The Past

Louisiana Cajun History
Trails To The Past
Your Host is
Sammie Jean Gregory-Fairchild
4th great granddaught of Lott and Nancy Gregory of New Hanover Precinct, North Carolina, British Colonies of North America now Turkey, North Carolina, United State Of America.

CAJUN ('ka:-j@n), n. A person of French Canadian descent born or living along the bayous, marshes, and prairies of southern Louisiana. The word Cajun began in 19th century Acadie (now Nova Scotia, Canada) when the Acadians began to arrive. The French of noble ancestry would say, "les Acadiens", while some referred to the Acadians as "le 'Cadiens", dropping the "A". Later came the Americans who could not pronounce "Acadien" or "'Cadien", so the word "Cajun" was born.

The 700,000 Cajuns who live in South Louisiana are descendants of French Canadians. About 18,000 French-speaking Catholics inhabitants from Brittany, Poitou, Normandy, and across
France established the French colony of Acadia, now Nova Scotia, Canada. The year was 1604 -- sixteen years before the Mayflower landed at Plymouth Rock, thus establishing one of the first permanent colonies on the North American continent. By the time the British won the colony from France in 1713, they had
established a thriving, self-sufficient community.

For refusing to pledge allegiance to the British crown, which required renouncing their traditional Catholic religion for that of the Anglican Church, they were forced from their homes in 1755.

This cruel and tragic event, known as Le Grand Dérangement, separated families and forced people to flee with only the possessions they could carry. Homes and crops were burned by the British and the Acadians went to sea under dreadful conditions, more than half lost their lives. This event remains a focal point of Acadian history to this day.

For several generations, the Cajuns raised various crops and lived on the bayou where they fished and trapped. Today, Cajuns are famous for their unique French dialect (a patois of 18th-century French), their music, their spicy cooking, and for their ability to live life to its fullest. They continue to preserve their folk customs.

Laissez les Bon Temps Roulez! (Let the good times roll).

Louisiana Cajun Culture

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Experiencing the Cajun culture is like no other. The Acadians of today are a thrifty, hard-working, fun-loving, devout religious folk. They work and play with equal enthusiasm.

"Work like hell to make your money, then spend it all having a good time!" -- from Les Blank's film "Spend It All", Flower Films

The Cajun's pleasure-loving nature expresses itself in the community festivals,dancing and food that are integral parts of bayou life. Cajuns are known for their"joie de vivre" (joy of living), and to add excitement to their food they experimentwith herbs, spices and ingredients to create some of the most flavorful dishes
that people throughout North America now enjoy.

One of the traditional favorite Cajun pastimes is an old- fashioned crawfish boil. When the sacred "mud bugs" or "crawdads" go into the pot a breath of excitement fills the air. Before the great feast of the boiled crawfish, potatoes, onions and corn, youngsters make a mad dash for the crawfish tub poking the live crawfish with sticks while other family members participate in crawfish races. Boiling crawfish is not the only way to enjoy the crustaceans. When crawfish go into the pot a number of delicious dishes result because there are almost as many ways to cook crawfish as there are swamps, ponds and ditches in which to catch them. Crawfish are served up in gumbo, bisque, étouffée, jambalaya, pies or patties. When the Cajuns aren't eating crawfish, they enjoy other world famous cuisine of Louisiana such as oysters, shrimp, boudin, pralines, gumbo and red beans and rice.

Courir du Mardi Gras

stjohns

One of the largest festivals is old-fashioned Courir du Mardi Gras (Mardi Gras Run), one of the local traditions that makes Mardi Gras in Cajun Country truly unique. The spectacle celebrated in small towns and villages in Acadiana is a favorite of visitors
interested in off-the-beaten-path experiences. With its roots firmly in the medieval tradition of ceremonial begging, bands of masked and costumed horseback and wagon riders led by the unmasked "Le Captaine" roam the countryside "begging for ingredients for their community gumbo. The day's festivities end with a fais-do-do and, of course, lots of savory gumbo.

In Cajun Country, a week hardly goes by without chants of praise to crawfish, rice, alligators, cotton, boudin, yams, gumbo and andouille, all the necessities of bayou life. Within the triangle of Acadiana's 22 parishes, you'll experience the "joie de vivre" of the Cajun lifestyle. Whether in food, music or fun, the Cajun tradition continues to live on in the hearts of Cajuns and visitors alike.