The various regions of Louisiana are different from each other. South Louisiana is very different from North Louisiana. Lafayette is different from New Orleans, Shreveport is different from Baton Rouge. based on their “folk culture” Louisiana is basically divided into three different regions, These regions are New Orleans, South Louisiana, and Northern Louisiana. There are many differences between these three regions. These differences are based on their geographies, immigrant histories, religions, and cultures. In fact, we can trace many of these differences to the variety of immigrant groups that settled in the three regions. Native Americans were already in Louisiana when the French came. Also came groups of Irish, Germans, Italians, Filipinos, Latinos and East Asians. Each group has added to the state’s culture and influenced it. But it takes more than just knowing the types of immigrants that have settled in Louisiana over the years. In order to truly understand a region’s cultural , you must investigate the history of the people behind these traditions. In other words, to truly understand a basket, dance, or story made by someone, you should know about the culture of the person who made it.
Now to start with the first of the three regions New Orleans. New Orleans is an urban region, it has a culture that is like no other in the world. It began with the Native Americans who first settled in the area. Once Europeans arrived, New Orleans was governed by the French, Spanish, and Americans at different times. Today, New Orleans is home to these and people of African heritage who speak French and English. New Orleans also has Italians, Germans, Irish, Latin, Greeks, Haitians, Filipinos, and Asians. Because of these different immigrant groups New Orleans has many religions, primarily Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish. Each of the many cultural groups has left its mark though. New Orleans is labeled as a Cajun, but it is not. Many Cajuns did move to New Orleans after World War 2, and settled in Westwego and Marrero. But the first and largest group of French in New Orleans came directly from France. These people of French heritage often call themselves Creole. As used in New Orleans, the word “Creole” refers to two different groups. It can refer to the descendants of the French and Spanish settlers or, it can refer to people of French, Spanish, and African descent.
Now the second region of Louisiana the southern half. South Louisiana can be described as a “cultural gumbo” because as you can identify the ingredients of the food gumbo, you can identify ingredients of a “cultural gumbo.” The ingredients are basically the melting pot, different but all blended together. A blend of French, Spanish, German, African, Irish, and Native American influences have created there unique cultural in South Louisiana. Many people think of South Louisiana as “Cajun”, a local term for “Acadian”. Cajuns are the descendants of French Acadians who were expelled from Nova Scotia by the British in 1755. They began arriving in Louisiana in 1765. There are many Cajuns in South Louisiana, but there are other groups as well. French speaking immigrants came directly from France, Canada, and the West Indies. After that, Spaniards came from Spain, Texas/Mexico, and the Canary Islands. Germans, Irish, Africans, Caribbean transplants also came to Southern Louisiana. Many of these groups blended with the Louisiana Native American groups. French traditional culture in South Louisiana is largely found in a great triangle type area on the state map, the top of the triangle is right below Alexandria, and the base stretches from New Orleans to Lake Charles. While it was largely French, Southeast Louisiana also saw the arrival of many English planters. likely to teach their enslaved Africans English rather than French, English.
Finally the third region of Louisiana, Northern Louisiana. North Louisiana includes parishes north of “the French triangle”, as well as the “Florida Parishes” north of Lake Pontchartrain. Even though the Florida Parishes are closer physically to southern Louisiana, they share historic settlement patterns more with northern Louisiana. Both northern regions have historically been populated primarily by British immigrants and African Americans. There are two primary subcultures within Northern Louisiana, first the Upland South hill culture and second, the Lowland South plantation culture. Both are mainly Protestant, but there are important differences between them. The Upland South region was settled by Scotch/Irish immigrants from Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Mississippi, and Tennessee. The majority of these immigrants were Baptist or Methodist. They were usually small farmers with a strong Protestant work ethic, and few of them owned enslaved Africans in large numbers. The Lowland South region in Louisiana was settled by Englishmen and Scots. They came from other Southern states and New England. These settlers established cotton plantations in the region where the Mississippi, Red, and Ouachita Rivers come together.
Their plantations depended on a large enslaved population. This is why there are so many rural blacks who live there today. Most of these settlers were Methodists, Presbyterians, or Episcopalians. There are also other ethnic groups among the Upland and Lowland South cultures. Hungarians in Tangipahoa Parish continue their dance, music, food, and costume traditions. Also, the Hungarian language has been taught in the elementary school in an effort to save it. Czechs in Rapides Parish have revitalized their dance, song, food, and costume traditions. Some rural Italian communities also remain. One community lives around the town of Independence in Tangipahoa Parish (one of the Florida Parishes), where strawberries are farmed. People in the town of Independence often make strawberry wine. Another rural, conservative Italian community is located around Powhattan in Union Parish, in North Louisiana.
Many other ethnic groups live in Louisiana. Louisiana history is basically filled with all of the races. All over the state there will be different cultural from all over the world. Now there is way more that I could of talked about in this essay about Louisiana but I chose the cultural because there was just so much to talk about.