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STANDARDS The material in this unit may be used to address the following Social Studies Standards:
ACADIA A colony settled by French Catholics beginning in 1605 and ruled alternately for the next 108 years by France and Britain. Acadia was located on Canada's eastern coast and included what is now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and part of the state of Maine. ACADIANS French Catholics who were expelled from Acadia by the British beginning in 1755. After temporary resettlement in Britain's American colonies, France, and/or the French West Indies, many Acadians made their way to Louisiana. ACADIANA Recognized by the Louisiana Legislature in 1971, Acadiana is the roughly triangular shaped, 22 parish region of south and central Louisiana in which the Cajun culture dominates. Cameron Parish in the west, Lafourche Parish in the east, and Avoyelles Parish to the north serve as the triangle's defining points. In addition to these three, Acadiana also includes the following parishes: Acadia, Ascension, Assumption, Calcasieu, Evangeline, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Pointe Coupee, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, Terrebonne, Vermilion, and West Baton Rouge. In 1974, the legislature granted the region its own flag. CAJUNS Some confusion exists concerning this word, and it is incorrect to use the terms "Acadian" and "Cajun" interchangeably. Strictly speaking, Cajuns are the descendants of the Acadian immigrants who arrived in Louisiana between 1764 and 1785 and gradually adapted their lifestyle and culture to the South Louisiana environment. It is important to note that, despite their common French origin, the Acadians and their Cajun descendants and the Creoles were not the same people. The Cajun culture absorbed other groups which settled in the 22 parish region known as Acadiana. Thus, broadly speaking, today any person born in Acadiana and who identifies with the Cajun culture may be considered a Cajun regardless of his or her ethnic origin. PRINTABLE VERSION
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