Louisiana Acadians (America Done Right)

The Louisiana Acadians (French: les Acadiens), also known as Cajuns (French: les Cadjins or les Cadiens), are an ethnic group mainly living in the U.S. state of Louisiana.

While Cajuns are usually described as the descendants of the Acadian exiles who came to Louisiana over the course of Le Grand Dérangement, Louisianians frequently use Cajun as a broad cultural term (particularly when referencing Acadiana) without necessitating descent from the deported Acadians. Although Cajun and Creole today are often portrayed as separate identities, Louisianians of Cajun descent were historically considered to be Louisiana Creoles. Cajuns make up a significant portion of south Louisiana's population and have had an enormous impact on the state's culture.

While Lower Louisiana had been settled by French colonists since the late 17th century, many Cajuns trace their roots to the influx of Acadian settlers after the Great Expulsion from their homeland during the French and British hostilities prior to the Seven Years' War (1756 to 1763). The Acadia region to which modern Cajuns trace their origin consisted largely of what are now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island plus parts of eastern Quebec and northern Maine.

Since their establishment in Louisiana, the Cajuns have become famous for their French dialect, Louisiana French (also called "Cajun French"), and have developed a vibrant culture including folkways, music, and cuisine. The Acadiana region is heavily associated with them.

Ethnic mixing and non-Acadian origins
Not all Cajuns descend solely from Acadian exiles who settled in south Louisiana in the 18th century. Cajuns include people with Irish and Spanish ancestry, and to a lesser extent of Germans and Italians; Many also have Native American, African and Afro-Latin Creole admixture. Historian Carl A. Brasseaux asserted that this process of mixing created the Cajuns in the first place.

Non-Acadian French Creoles in rural areas were absorbed into Cajun communities. Some Cajun parishes, such as Evangeline and Avoyelles, possess relatively few inhabitants of actual Acadian origin. Their populations descend in many cases from settlers who migrated to the region from Quebec, Mobile, or directly from France (French emigration). Regardless, Acadian influences are generally acknowledged to have prevailed in most sections of south Louisiana.

Many Cajuns have ancestors who were not French. Some of the original settlers in Louisiana were Spanish Basques and Spanish Canary Islanders. A later migration included Irish and German immigrants who began to settle in Louisiana before and after the Louisiana Purchase, particularly on the German Coast along the Mississippi River north of New Orleans. People of Latin American origin; a number of early Filipino settlers (notably in Saint Malo, Louisiana) who were known as "Manilamen" from the annual cross-Pacific Galleon or Manila Galleon trade with neighboring Acapulco, Mexico; descendants of African slaves; and some Cuban Americans have also settled along the Gulf Coast, and in some cases, intermarried into Cajun families.

One obvious result of this cultural mixture is the variety of surnames common among the Cajun population. Surnames of the original Acadian settlers (which are documented) have been augmented by French and non-French family names that have become part of Cajun communities. The spelling of many family names has changed over time. (See, for example, Eaux).