Colonial Louisiana Starting in the second half of the 17th century, several trading posts were established in
Lower Louisiana () eventually giving way to greater French colonial aspirations with the turn of the century. French immigration was at its peak during the 17th and 18th centuries which firmly established the Creole culture and language there. One important distinction to make is that the term "créole" at the time was consistently used to signify native, or "locally-born" in contrast to "foreign-born". In general the core of the population was rather diverse, coming from all over the
French colonial empire namely
Canada,
France, and the
French West Indies. Eventually, with the consistent relations built between the Native American tribes and francophones, new vocabulary was adopted into the colonial language. For example, something of a "French-Choctaw patois" is said to have developed primarily among Louisiana's Afro-French population and
métis Creoles with a large portion of its vocabulary said to be of Native American origin. Prior to the late arrival of the
Acadian people in Louisiana, the French of Louisiana had already begun to undergo
changes as noted by Captain Jean-Bernard Bossu who traveled with and witnessed
Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne speaking this "common language." This unusual blend of French was also noticed by Pierre-Clement de Laussat during a lunch visit with the Creole-French Canterelle family. Upon the arrival of their
Houma relatives, the family began conversing in "French and Choctaw." Additional witness to this variety of French comes from J.F.H. Claiborne, a cousin of Louisiana's first American governor, who also noted the "unusual patois of provincial French and Choctaw." Starting in 1755, large populations of the
French-speaking Acadians began to arrive en masse along the Mississippi River as well as eventually arriving all the way to south to the modern-day state of Louisiana following the
Great Upheaval. In 1762, France relinquished all its territorial claims in North America, and the province of Louisiana was transferred to Spain. The Spanish government of what was now
Luisiana permitted the Acadians to continue to speak French and maintain their own customs. The original Acadian community was composed mainly of farmers and fishermen. However, the hardships after being exiled from
Nova Scotia, along with the difficult process of resettlement in Louisiana and the ensuing poverty made it difficult to establish schools in the early stages of the community's development. Eventually schools were established, as private academies whose faculty had recently arrived in Louisiana from France or who had been educated in France. Children were usually able to attend the schools only long enough to learn counting and reading. At the time, a standard part of a child's education in the Cajun community was also the
Catholic catechism, which was taught in French by an older member of the community. The 1845 Louisiana constitution permitted any legislator to address the body in either English or French, and the 1845 and 1852 constitutions required all laws to be written in both English and French. The 1864 Louisiana constitution abandoned the dual language requirement and directed public instruction to be conducted in English, although Article 128 prohibited the state from barring French speakers from public office. The post-Civil War constitution of 1868 further stated that "no laws shall require judicial process to be issued in any [language] other than the English language". However, French was still the most spoken language in many parishes of Louisiana, and the constitution of 1879 adjusted the previous restrictions to require that laws "be promulgated and preserved in the English language; but the General Assembly may provide for the publication of the laws in the French Language, and prescribe that judicial advertisements in certain designated cities and parishes...be made in that language." It also allowed primary school to teach in French, a provision that was extended in the 1898 and 1913 constitutions to include secondary schools. The education and religious services of Louisiana eventually fell prey to English, and the eventual consequence of speaking French was that speaking French became a sign of cultural illegitimacy. a sentiment later criticized by the Québécois poet Michèle Lalonde's in her 1974 poem "
Speak White" ("Speak white... be civilized"). The French schools worked to emphasize Standard French, which they considered to be the
prestige dialect. When the government
required all schools, public and
parochial, to teach in English, new teachers, who could not speak French, were hired. Children could not understand their teachers and generally ignored them by continuing to speak French. Eventually, children were subjected to
corporal punishment for speaking French on school grounds. Some residents of
Acadiana are
bilingual though, having learned French at home and English in school. Currently, Louisiana French is considered an
endangered language.
Decline in World War II The war compelled many Cajun people to leave their home state of Louisiana for the first time and serve in the military. Cajun GIs, most of whom could neither speak nor understand English, encountered solely English-speaking Americans and learned it to serve and survive in the military. These activities which the Cajuns participated in promoted feelings of national unity, and drew the Cajuns closer to Mainstream America. Conwell focused on the French spoken in
Lafayette, Louisiana, and evaluated what was then its current status. She pointed out that the gradual decline of French made it "relatively common" to find "grand-parents who speak only French, parents who speak both French and English, children who speak English and understand French, and grand-children who speak and understand only English." The decision to teach French to children was well-received since grandparents hoped for better opportunities for communicating with their grandchildren. The Louisiana state legislature has greatly shifted its stance on the status of French. Since the passage of Legislative Act No. 409 in 1968, the Louisiana governor is granted the authorization "to establish the Council for the Development of Louisiana-French" and that the agency is to consist of no more than fifty members, including a chairman. The name was soon changed to CODOFIL and was granted the power to "do anything possible and necessary to encourage the development, usage and preservation of French as it exists in Louisiana". In 1984, Jules O. Daigle, a
Roman Catholic priest, published
A Dictionary of the Cajun Language the first dictionary devoted to "Cajun French". Once considered an authority on the language, it is however not exhaustive; it omits alternate spellings and synonyms that Father Daigle deemed "perversions" of the language but are nonetheless popular among so-called Louisiana French speakers and writers. Though remaining useful today, Daigle's dictionary has been superseded by the
Dictionary of Louisiana French (2010), edited by Albert Valdman and other authorities on the language. According to Jacques Henry, former executive director of CODOFIL, much progress has been made for francophones and the future of French in Louisiana is not merely a symbolic one. According to statistics gathered by CODOFIL, the past twenty years has seen widespread acceptance of French-immersion programs. He goes further to write that the official recognition, appreciation by parents, and inclusion of French in schools reflects growing regard of the language. Ultimately the survival of French in Louisiana can only be guaranteed by Louisianan parents and politicians, but that there is still hope. Similarly, the state legislature passed the Louisiana French Language Services Act in 2011 with particular mention to cultural tourism, local culture, and heritage. The bill sets forth that each branch of the state government shall take necessary action to identify employees who are proficient in French. Each branch of the state government is to take necessary steps in producing services in the French language for both locals and visitors. This bill is, however, an unfunded state mandate. The legislative act was drafted and presented by francophone and
francophile senators and representatives as it asserts that the French language is vital to the economy of the state. In October 2018, through an initiative launched by Scott Tilton and Rudy Bazenet, Louisiana became the first U.S. state to join the
Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. Since Louisiana joined the Francophonie, new organizations have launched to help revitalize Louisiana French, including the Nous Foundation and
Alliance Française of New Orleans. Grassroots initiatives remain popular among francophone subsections of Louisianian society, often organized through online platforms such as Facebook. French-language initiatives founded in the late 2010s and early 2020s include Télé-Louisiane, a multimedia platform; Charrer-Veiller, a podcast (defunct as of 2022); LaCréole, another podcast; and
Le Bourdon de la Louisiane, a web gazette. Poetry remains the most popular medium of literary expression, with poets such as Kirby Jambon and Ashlee Michot receiving international attention. As with other cases of language revitalization (such as
Irish), young Louisianians may speak a more standardized French than their forebears, having learned French both at school and via the greater community. Among such youths, the influence of vernacular Louisiana French on their speech patterns varies from speaker to speaker, depending on such factors as ethnic background, socioeconomic class, exposure to francophones of the elder generation, educational level, political beliefs and personal preference. Given increased levels of education in Standard French and greater exposure to the international
francophonie, it is likely Louisiana French will continue to evolve in this manner, with some traditionally Louisianian words and linguistic features being retained while others slowly fade. == Population ==