America is historically described as
a land established by immigrants and refugees. It was settled in various areas
at various times by the English, Dutch, French and Irish. Throughout that time period it was often used
as a safe haven for those fleeing political or religious persecution. The idea
of fruitful land and limitless possibilities served as an attractive lure to
many who had never been given such an opportunity. Such is the case for the
Acadians a group shuffled to and fro throughout history who eventually found their
greener grass in an area of the United States where grass may often not be
found at all.
 |
| Nova Scotia (courtesy: http://www.canada-maps.org/nova-scotia.htm) |
Acadia, which is now modern day Nova
Scotia, was originally settled by a small group of French in the mid 1600’s. They enjoyed their homeland with little interruption
until French and Indian war. During the war the British commenced what is known
as the Great Expulsion. Many texts describe this as an ethnic cleansing or
deportation. The Acadians were either imprisoned or stripped of their homeland
by the British in an attempt to usurp the French. (Johnston, 2007)
Many of the Acadians that escaped
with their lives fled to what is modern day Louisiana. Over the years the areas
settled by the Acadian refuges, now loosely referred to as Acadiana, were also settled
by descendants of the original French and Spanish settlers, better known as
creoles. (Bernard) This melting pot of
cultures and languages has created many interesting and diverse cultures. These
cultures have created a wonderfully unique integration of culinary, religion,
music and communication known as the Cajun way of life.
 |
| Area settled by Acadian refugees shown in red. (courtesy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Acadiana_Louisiana_region_map.svg) |
The language of the Cajun people is
one of the more interesting facets of the culture. Much of the original settlers
and refuges were francophone’s, but over time the integration of English from
settlers and slaves, as well as the Spanish created a new language entirely. Many
of the words and expressions used exhibit signs of code switching, or jumping
between languages (Judith N Martin), which became rooted
within the language. Terms commonly used by the francophone’s or the Spanish become
integrated into the typical English speaking language. This adaptation is indicative
of the melding of the cultures by the refugees and immigrants as typical with a
long term adjustment and assimilation to new cultural society, in effect
creating a new cultural identity.
The Acadian people have long been
recognized by the surrounding and competing cultures within Louisiana, however
in 1980 the government granted recognition of the group as well. In a landmark discrimination
case of James Roach v Dresser Industries the 500,000 Acadians still living in
the area where granted the status of a National Minority. (Brasseaux, 1987) This judgment culminated the struggle
of the Acadian people and their persecution, transition, and evolution to Cajun
cultural identity. The development of the now day Cajun culture is a rich story
with a great many historical examples of the development and implementation of
communication theory.
Bibliography
Bernard, S. K. (n.d.). Creoles. New Oreleans, LA,
USA: KnowLA. Retrieved March 9, 2012, from www.knowla.org
Brasseaux, C. A. (1987). The Found of New Acadia.
Lousiana: The Lousiana State University Press.
Johnston, A. (2007). The Acadian Deportation in a
Compartive Context: An Introduction. Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society,
10, 114-131.
Judith N Martin, T. K. (n.d.). Intercultural
Communication In contexts (5 ed.). New York, New York: McGraw-Hill.
