Cajun Initial Understanding

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Cajun Culture Final Understanding

Education

Education is of utmost importance

Social Control

No information is known about this specific area of culture.

Language and Nonverbal Communication

Oral storytelling and folktales are how the Cajuns pass down cultural beiiefs, practices, and traditions from generation to generation.

The language that is mainly spoken in the Cajun Culture is French and English.

Material Culture

Prefer to stay and live as close to the Bayou as possible for the opportunities for fishing and swamping that it provides.

Food is a big part of the Cajun culture. Most Cajun food is made with a roux (burned flour and oil). The majority of popular Cajun dishes includes gumbo, dirty rice, jambalaya, boudin, and crawfish. They are heavily influenced by the Louisiana rivers and swamp land as well as foods traditionally used in the Arcadia territory.

World View

Mardi Gras is the last day before Lent and is celebrated with family and friends.“It doesn’t matter what your religion, all the local schools, families, and businesses participate. It’s about the community and family” (Lisa, Personal Communication, November 9, 2013).

A shift took place around the years of 1950-1980, the number of Cajun’s who classified themselves as catholics decreased in numbers, while the number of Cajun’s who classified themselves as protestants (baptists) increased in rapid numbers (Clarke, 1985).

In the early periods around the year of 1755 when the Cajuns were initially exiled from Nova Scotia, despite the change in location, they maintained a widespread religious faith of catholicism (Clarke, 1985).

Economic Organization

It is common for a family and their extended family members to live together under one roof.

Wealth as well as property are often passed down from generation to generation.

Social Organization

Family is first and foremost, and it vital to community and cultural survival as well as maintenance.

The Arts

Music and Dance are a large part of cajun culture and community. Often, much of the music has a blues type of style, and the dances are similar to other traditional folkdances.

Conflicit and Warefare

Debates ensure over specific cultural language usage, as well as geneology, i.e., who is truly Cajun?!

“The French and Indian War. The British rounded up all the French colonists living in Nova Scotia in the coastal area of Canada and exiled them from Canada. Many of them migrated to the south-western part of Louisiana to an area they called Acadiana. Cajun is short for Acadian. Those mostly French speaking migrants are the core of the Cajun culture. They settled in the bayous and swamps where they still reside to this day” (Kevin, Personal Communication, November 9, 2013).