THE PEOPLE

The name Cajun is a corruption of Acadian. A group of French immigrants settled in Acadie - the name given by France to the "New World" maritime territories, encompassing what is presently called Nova Scotia. In 1755, during an ongoing colonial struggle between Britain and France, Britain was laying claim to this land. The French settlers, who had been living there for about a century, were forcibly deported by the British who had doubts about their loyalties. The French, about 8000 in number, were put on ships and left to their own devices - essentially scattered to the winds. Many died at sea. Some made it to France. Others made it to the southwest section of the present-day state Louisiana. At this time, the area was part of a swath of territory called Louisiana Territory that ran northward across the continent. This is the area that was added to the United States under President Jefferson in 1803 - the Louisiana Purchase. These are the Cajuns - people who had come to the "New World" mainly from western France, some of whom married with the MicMac people native to the land, survived expulsion and come to southern Louisiana.

THE PEOPLE

Linguists find the roots of the word "Creole" to be in the Spanish "Criallo," meaning mixture of cultures or colors (the brand name "Crayola"™ has the same root), and the Latin word "creare," meaning to create. In essence, the sense is of a new creation of a multi-colored race. The Creoles, originally, were the children of European aristocrats, born in New Orleans. The Spanish, in order to establish New Orleans in the early 1690s, sought out aristocrats who, by being the second sons, were not entitled to inheritences. The intermarriage of the seven nations that settled the city in the late 1600s, created Creole culture in the larger sense. So Creole is Native American, French, Spanish, English, African, German and Italian.

THE FOOD

Meals characteristically Cajun are "one pot meals" ––jambalaya, grillades, stews, fricassees, soups, gumbos, sauce piquantes and a variety of stuffed vegetable dishes. This doesn't mean that the Cajuns didn't incorporate cuisine from others. The andouille, smoked sausage, boudin, chaudin, tasso and chaurice, so prominent in Cajun meals is the result of the adoption of specialties and charcuterie of the Germans in Louisiana. Cajun cuisine is a creative adaptation of indigenous Louisiana foods.

THE FOOD

The food represents the sharing of these peoples:

FRANCE: Bouillabaisse –a soup from Provence, an important contributor to the creation of gumbo

SPAIN: Paella –the inspiration of Louisiana's jambalaya

GERMANY: Fine sausage making and dependable fine milk and butter – rarely available in South Louisiana prior to the arrival of the Germans.

ITALY: pastry and ice cream making

WEST INDIES: From Haiti came exotic vegetables and cooking methods. Braising –a slow-cooking technique, mirlitons, sauce piquantes and the use of tomato

NATIVE AMERICANS: The Choctaws, Chetimaches and Houmas, introduced corn, ground sassafras leaves or filé powder and bay leaves from the laurel tree

AFRICA: "kin gumbo" – the okra plant, and cooking techniques

Creole cooking is more complex than Cajun. It can be thought of as "city cooking."

bread / dipen

cabbage / deschou

beer / bè

dinner / dinin

drink / bwa

eat / manje

egg / dese

evening / swa

flour / lafarin

fresh / frech

grill / v griye

He who sleeps thinks not of eating.

The yapping dog never dies.

He who laughs on Friday will cry on Saturday.

Today for me, tomorrow for you. (Each in turn.)

When the rain falls, the frogs sing. (Everything succeeds naturally.)

He who plays with dogs catches fleas

Tell me what you love and I'll tell you what I am.

happy / kontan

hungry / gen fem

kitchen / kisin

man / nomm

meat / lavyonn

mouth / ladjèl

smell / senti

supper / soupe

together / ensomn

wine / divin

woman / fom