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Acadians head south to help Cajun cousins

Broadcast Date: April 11, 1969

More than 200 years after the original exodus to Louisiana, a small but important delegation of Canadian Acadians is once again heading south. They're travelling to the U.S. South to promote their language and heritage. In 1969, French culture is enjoying a renaissance in New Brunswick, but teaching French in Louisiana schools is outlawed and the language is in decline. CBC Television follows the group on this unique exchange visit.

Acadians head south to help Cajun cousins

• Beginning in 1604, settlers from France crossed the ocean and established communities along Canada's east coast in present day Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, known as "l'Acadie." Many immigrants came over the next few years to develop the fertile lands. But tension mounted as France and Britain each made territorial claims on this same stretch of land. Britain assumed control of the region with the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713.

• After the Treaty of Utrecht, conflict abounded between the British powers and the French residents in Acadia. Fearing a potential rebellion and union with the nearby French forces, British authorities demanded that the Acadians pledge an oath of allegiance to the British Crown. Wanting to remain neutral in the British-French struggle for land, the Acadians resisted swearing allegiance but finally agreed. Unsure of their loyalty, the British forces deported or imprisoned the Acadians between 1755 and 1762.

• It is estimated that 7,000 to 11,000 people were deported from the Acadian region during the "Great Upheaval" or "Great Explusion" (Le Grand Dérangement). Many were exiled to France and England, and a large group travelled south and attempted to rebuild their French colony in Louisiana. Approximately 3,000 others went into hiding, setting up new homes along the St. Lawrence River in the Gaspé Peninsula.

• Some Acadians returned to the Acadian region following the Seven Years' War, which decisively terminated any French interests or authority in the Maritimes and New France. The Acadians felt that they would no longer be caught between the two warring interests of Britain and France and could at last return to their homeland. But when they returned, the Acadians found that their former land had already been settled, forcing them to move up to the north shore of the coast.

• In the United States, the Cajun language declined considerably in the 20th century. Efforts to revive it began in the 1960s, and educational partnerships with Acadian Canadians are ongoing.
• There are roughly one million people in the United States with Acadian ancestry; most are still located in the Louisiana region.
• Louisiana is the only state and Quebec the only province whose laws are based on France's Civil Law.

• In Canada, Acadians made important gains in the 20th century. In 1960, Louis Robichaud became New Brunswick's first elected Acadian premier. (The first Acadian premier was Pierre-Jean Veniot, who was appointed in 1923 after Premier W.E. Foster resigned.)
• In 1995, Romeo Leblanc became the first Acadian Governor-General. In 1997, Michel Bastarache was the first Acadian appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. Singers Roch Voisine, Jean-François Breau, Edith Butler and author Antonine Maillet are all of Acadian heritage.

• The word "Cajun" derives from acadiens, the French word for Acadian. It is used to describe the group of Acadians who were deported from Canada's east coast and settled in Louisiana in the late 18th century.
• Other cultures also contributed to the Cajun population, including Germans, non-Acadian French Creoles and aboriginal groups.

• A 2000 census indicated that Louisiana had almost 200,000 francophones over the age of five.

• The Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL) was established in 1968 to aid in "the development, utilization, and preservation of the French language as found in Louisiana for the cultural, economic and touristic benefit of the state".

• CODOFIL noted that speaking French at school was once "discouraged through means such as humiliation or corporal punishment." The organization has worked to reverse the perception that French is somehow inferior, and promoted the teaching of French in Louisiana schools. In 1983 Louisiana voted to require five years of second language study at the elementary school level. CODOFIL's website states that "in Louisiana today, more students than ever before study the French language.

Acadians head south to help Cajun cousins

Medium: Television

Program: CBC Television News

Broadcast Date: April 11, 1969

Guest(s): Leonie Boudreau-Nelson, James Deumengeau, Jeanette Viajean

Reporter: Tom Leach

Duration: 4:13

Last updated:
March 14, 2008