Cajun vs Creole ?

Bo Pettersson

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May 31, 1996, 3:00:00 AM5/31/96

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Could someone please help me out?

Whats the difference between Cajun and Creole?

I were in New Orleans in April for the first time ever - and tasted some
of the best food I've had in years. But I was confused by the Cajun and
Creole difference.

Thank you for any answer - I will return to Loisiana again soon.

Bo Pettersson, Sweden - Europe.

Edward J. Branley

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May 31, 1996, 3:00:00 AM5/31/96

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In article <31AF76...@mailbox.tip.net>, bop...@mailbox.tip.net says...

>Whats the difference between Cajun and Creole?
>
>I were in New Orleans in April for the first time ever - and tasted some
>of the best food I've had in years. But I was confused by the Cajun and
>Creole difference.

Well, in the context of food, it's pretty easy to give you a clear answer. The
short version is country (Cajun) vs. city (Creole). Cajun cuisine has its
origins in Acadiana in Southwest Louisiana, where Creole cuisine is the food of
New Orleans. In recent years, "Cajun" has become popularized in particular by
Chef Paul Prudhomme, formerly of Commander's Palace and now of K-Paul's in New
Orleans. Prudhomme loves to dump cayenne pepper in copious quantities on all
of his food. His personal popularity has forever linked Cajun with hot.
Creole dishes tend to be much more subtle and more complex than Cajun dishes,
with a good bit more European influence.

Cheers,
Ed.

Shane K. Bernard

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Jun 1, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/1/96

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Bo Pettersson <bop...@mailbox.tip.net> wrote:

>Could someone please help me out?

>Whats the difference between Cajun and Creole?

Rats! I wish I had saved my answer from the last time someone asked
this!

Here's the shortest possible answer I can come up with to a very
complex question; see also the essays on this very topic on my
homepage (URL listed below):

Cajuns are the descendents of French-speaking Acadians expelled from
Nova Scotia in the 18th century; and also of the ethnic groups (e.g.,
the Spanish, French, Germans, Anglo-Americans) with whom those
Acadians intermarried after their resettlement in South Louisiana.
(Not all Acadians came to Louisiana, however -- some stayed in the
Maritime Provinces of Canada.) To me, it was the process of
intermarrying with those other ethnic groups that converted the
Acadians in South Louisiana (as well as those other ethnic groups)
into a new ethnic group, the Cajuns.

The meaning of Creole is even more complex, because historically many
types of Creoles have existed, both black and white, rural and urban.
Creole in its broadest sense means "native" -- thus, blacks and whites
born in Louisiana called themselves Creoles to distinguish themselves
from more recent arrivals to the region. Today in SW La. black
Creoles use the term almost exclusively, though I understand that in
New Orleans many whites continue to use the term (and some of these
whites deny that black Creoles exist). New Orleans also possesses a
large urban black Creole population, but their culture is different
from the rural black Creoles of SW La.

I haven't done the matter much justice, so here's some recommended
reading:

Barry Jean Ancelet, Jay Edwards, Glen Pitre et al. Cajun Country.
Folklife in the South Series. Jackson, Miss.: University Press of
Mississippi, 1991.

Brasseaux, Carl A. The Founding of New Acadia: The Beginnings of
Acadian Life in Louisiana, 1765-1803. Baton Rouge, La.: Louisiana
State University Press, 1987.

________. From Acadian to Cajun: Transformation of a People, 1803-77.
Jackson, Miss.: University Press of Mississippi, 1992.

________, Keith P. Fontenot, and Claude F. Oubre, Creoles of Color in
the Bayou Country. (Jackson, Miss.: University Press of Mississippi,
1994).

Tregle, Jr., Joseph G. "On That Word 'Creole' Again: A Note."
Louisiana History 23 (Spring
1982): 193-98.

SKB
Cajun in Exile

----------------
Shane K. Bernard (skb...@tam2000.tamu.edu)
Visit the Cajun & Creole Pages at:
http://http.tamu.edu:8000/~skb8721/index.html
And the Swamp Pop Music Pages at:
http://http.tamu.edu:8000/~skb8721/swamp.html

Dwight Shackelford

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Jun 1, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/1/96

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In <4opo58$7...@news.tamu.edu> skb...@tam2000.tamu.edu (Shane K.

Bernard) writes:
>
>Bo Pettersson <bop...@mailbox.tip.net> wrote:
>
>>Could someone please help me out?
>
>>Whats the difference between Cajun and Creole?
>
>Rats! I wish I had saved my answer from the last time someone asked
>this!
>

Looks like we need a FAQ:

Where does the word Cajun come from?

What's the difference between Creole and CAjun?

Is Coonass derogatory? (NO!)

Origin of word Zydeco?

Is New Orleans synonymous with Cajun? (No)

What does Lagniappe mean? How do you pronounce it?

Etcetera, Etcetera, Etcetera...................

Is there some Web site this could be attached to that we could just
point people to?

Shane K. Bernard

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Jun 2, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/2/96

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dds...@ix.netcom.com(Dwight Shackelford ) wrote:

>Looks like we need a FAQ:

>Is there some Web site this could be attached to that we could just
>point people to?

Maybe I'll work on one over the summer break. Maintaining a homepage
can be time consuming!