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re: How French was almost decimated and efforts to save it in Louisiana
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:26 am to 777Tiger
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:26 am to 777Tiger
quote:
lived in Lafayette a long time and had tons on Cajun French speaking friends, I never heard from any of them about it being "beaten out of them" at schools, hell, you could take courses in it at USL,
No. They're talking about the 30's and 40's. Long before there was a USL. My mother always told us how if they were caught speaking French at school, they'd get a ruler slammed into their hands and fingers. It was literally beat out of the to learn English. Basically, they became bilingual.
2
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:27 am to Mike da Tigah
Good. When you come to English speaking America, you’re supposed to assimilate into the American culture and language.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:28 am to 777Tiger
quote:
I never heard from any of them about it being "beaten out of them" at schools
My grandfather was born in 1932, French was his first language, and French was “beaten out of him” in elementary school. He still spoke to his friends in French up until his death 4 years ago, but never taught his kids French because of his school experience. This was in rural Vermilion parish.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:29 am to GumboPot
quote:
I think I'm a little incorrect. While the soft or silent "n" is correct you also need a little "h" sound in there like you phonetically spell out.
I like to call it a short n, there’s just a hint of it and then you cut it off, like the sound a Cajun makes when they question somebody
anh?
ETA: I’m half fluent, can carry a brief conversation if the other person speaks slowly and deliberate
I can actually read it better than I can speak it. My roots are Bayou Lafourche and PAC. My mom went to school in PAC in the 50s, they weren’t beaten for speaking it, but were only allowed to on the playground, not in class. Also, in the 80s you rarely heard English in PAC, you had to know at least a little.This post was edited on 2/4/25 at 9:33 am
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:30 am to mylsuhat
How do you say croissant?
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:31 am to TigerGman
quote:
It was literally beat out of the to learn English.
it's understandable that they should have learned English, it seems like it's a misunderstanding that they were being punished for knowing and conversing in French outside of the classroom, just that while they were in school, English was to be spoken
quote:
they became bilingual.
this is a great thing, imo
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:31 am to mylsuhat
quote:
And yet folks from New Orleans (and BR) still pronounce Boudin terribly wrong by saying Boo-Dan
I think the people who have to pronounce boudin with the n silent, only do that to try and show off, and act like they’re real Cajuns.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:33 am to Mike da Tigah
In Avoyelles you can still find a few elderly people who speak it to each other. Gotta love the Lafayette airport’s commitment to keeping it alive, doing announcements in french.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:33 am to sta4ever
quote:They were here long before it was English speaking America.
Good. When you come to English speaking America, you’re supposed to assimilate into the American culture and language.
(If you're being serious.)
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:34 am to Purple Spoon
quote:
croissant?
Cwa-soh (i saw cruh-sont)
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:34 am to sta4ever
quote:
I think the people who have to pronounce boudin with the n silent, only do that to try and show off, and act like they’re real Cajuns.
How do you say tortilla?
Tor-TILL-a
This post was edited on 2/4/25 at 9:35 am
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:35 am to Mike da Tigah
My mother tracked down her lineage decade's ago the old school way before 23 and me and this is where her side came from.. Pretty damn fascinating.. Our ancestors move from France to Nova Scotia only to be kicked out by the Brits ... Made their way to La to then be forced off their land by the Spanish.. Then got new land (along with some unpaid helpers) from Spain.. I need to get all the research she did.. I remember it beginning pretty interesting as a kid .
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:35 am to Mike da Tigah
My mom's side of the family are 100% Cajun French and up to my mom's generation, Cajun French was spoken pretty regular. My grandma, aunts, uncles and their older friends would sit around speaking it, often sprinkled with a few English words from time to time.
When I was a kid I thought it was such a cool thing to do and wanted to learn but was never taught by anyone and mostly admonished not only in school, but also by my relatives who wanted us to sound more standardized to the norm.
I NEVER hear it around N.O. now like I would from time to time as a kid. The last time I was in an area with a lot of Cajun speaking people was 20 years ago when a friend was in a hospital in Houma dealing with cancer. I walked downstairs with his wife so she could go outside to smoke a cigarette and there were several older people in the area speaking it and it brought back some strong memories.
I'm very glad to see there are efforts to preserve that part of our culture.
When I was a kid I thought it was such a cool thing to do and wanted to learn but was never taught by anyone and mostly admonished not only in school, but also by my relatives who wanted us to sound more standardized to the norm.
I NEVER hear it around N.O. now like I would from time to time as a kid. The last time I was in an area with a lot of Cajun speaking people was 20 years ago when a friend was in a hospital in Houma dealing with cancer. I walked downstairs with his wife so she could go outside to smoke a cigarette and there were several older people in the area speaking it and it brought back some strong memories.
I'm very glad to see there are efforts to preserve that part of our culture.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:39 am to 777Tiger
quote:Were your friends born 80 to 100 years ago?
and had tons on Cajun French speaking friends, I never heard from any of them about it being "beaten out of them" at schools
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:42 am to Epaminondas
quote:
quote:Good. When you come to English speaking America, you’re supposed to assimilate into the American culture and language.They were here long before it was English speaking America. (If you're being serious.)
We were also brought here against our will in the same fashion as the slaves, lost a similar percentage on the voyage and were turned away all along the east coast until we were finally allowed off the ships in Spanish controlled Louisiana, that’s why we’re here.
And I don’t want a ticket back to Nova Scotia, too damned cold
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:42 am to Mike da Tigah
Never heard stories of being beaten but my grandfather said his parents wouldn't speak French to him cause they wanted him to learn English and he learned French on his own but he then in turn did not speak it to my father. So my father didn't learn French and neither did I. I do now speak Spanish however.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:45 am to Epaminondas
quote:
Were your friends born 80 to 100 years ago?
some of them
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:45 am to Epaminondas
My Dad was born in 1933, and I heard those stories from him.
My grandparents spoke English as a second language, and my parents were bilingual.
I'm told I spoke French before I spoke English (we spent a lot of time with my Mom's parents, where French was spoken), but that was lost a long time ago.
My grandparents spoke English as a second language, and my parents were bilingual.
I'm told I spoke French before I spoke English (we spent a lot of time with my Mom's parents, where French was spoken), but that was lost a long time ago.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:46 am to Mike da Tigah
French is terrible, but we're all supposed to pretend Ebonics is acceptable.
Posted on 2/4/25 at 9:47 am to N2cars
quote:
Ebonics is acceptable.
noumsayin'?
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