Cajun Country

Acadiana (French and Louisiana French: ''L'Acadiane''), also known as the Cajun Country ( Louisiana French: ''Le Pays Cadjin'', es, País Cajún), is the official name given to the French Louisiana region that has historically contained much of the state's Francophone population. Many inhabitants of the Cajun Country have Acadian ancestry and identify as Cajuns or Creoles. Of the 64 parishes that make up the U.S. state of Louisiana, 22 named parishes and other parishes of similar cultural environment make up this intrastate region.

Etymology

The word "Acadiana" reputedly has two origins. Its first recorded appearance dates to the mid-1950s, when a Crowley, Louisiana, newspaper, the ''Crowley Daily Signal'', coined the term in reference to Acadia Parish, Louisiana. However, KATC television in Lafayette independently coined "Acadiana" in the early 1960s, giving it a new, broader meaning, and popularized it throughout southern Louisiana. Founded in 1962, KATC was owned by the Acadian Television Corporation. In early 1963, the ABC affiliate received an invoice erroneously addressed to the "Acadiana" Television Corp. Someone had typed an extra "a" at the end of the word "Acadian". The station started using it to describe the region covered by its broadcast signal.

Today, numerous business, governmental, and nonprofit organizations incorporate Acadiana in their names, e.g., Mall of Acadiana and Acadiana High School. Notably, KLFY-TV, the regional CBS affiliate, used the term in its very successful "Hello News" branding campaign as "Hello Acadiana." KATC hosts a morning television show, "Good Morning Acadiana".

History

Historically part of French Louisiana, present-day Acadiana was inhabited by Attakapa Native Americans. After their expulsion from Canada at the end of the Seven Years' War, Acadian refugees settled the region. The Acadians intermarried with other settlers, forming what became known as Cajun culture.

In 1971, the Louisiana State Legislature officially recognized 22 Louisiana parishes and "other parishes of similar cultural environment" for their "strong French Acadian cultural aspects" (House Concurrent Resolution No. 496, June 6, 1971, authored by Carl W. Bauer of St. Mary Parish), and made the "Heart of Acadiana" the official name of the region. The public, however, prefers the one-word place name ''Acadiana'' to refer to the region. The official term appears on regional maps and highway markers.

On October 3, 2002, the central Acadiana region suffered a direct hit from category one Hurricane Lili. The hurricane caused most of Acadiana to lose power, and some areas lost phone service. In addition, some high-rise buildings in downtown Lafayette had windows broken and many homes throughout the region had roof damage. The high winds of Lili toppled the tower of KLFY TV-10 onto the station's studio facilities. Only one injury inside the station was reported from the tower's collapse.

The eastern Acadiana region was somewhat affected by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, although the damage was nowhere near what it was farther east in Greater New Orleans. The region was used by many returning evacuees as a "last stop" of temporary domicile before returning to Greater New Orleans. This was due in large part to the Greater Baton Rouge area already being inundated with evacuees. Governor Kathleen Blanco made a public request that those returning not try to seek lodging in the capital due to this crisis of overpopulation. Lafayette and several other municipalities had both public and church-run shelters set up to handle the influx. The largest of these shelters, run by the Red Cross, was the Lafayette sports arena (the Cajundome) holding a reported 9,800 persons.

The western Acadiana region and east Texas were most affected by Hurricane Rita on September 24, 2005. The Greater Lake Charles metropolitan area suffered the majority of the damage.

On Labor Day 2008, Hurricane Gustav caused severe damage to the region. Although Lafayette, Saint Martinville and Crowley had little damage (comparatively) and some residents still had power, the rest of the region stood in contrast. From Alexandria to the coast and Baton Rouge to Lake Charles, there were reports of massive power failures and flooding. Most notable was the flooding south of Louisiana Highway 14 and the communities there. U.S. 90 was shut down for several days due to the flooding caused by Gustav.

The total death toll from Gustav in Acadiana was limited. This was attributed to the evacuation and mitigation plans that had been drilled by state and local official, and to a strong presence of both the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In total, almost two million people along the Louisiana coast were evacuated in over two days. This made Gustav preparations the largest evacuation in Louisiana history, and one of the most successful evacuations in the nation's history.

In 2015, the region's largest city (Lafayette) gained international attention for a mass shooting and murder-suicide at Grand 16 Theater.

In 2020, hurricanes Laura and Delta caused significant damage to the western-most portion of Acadiana, including Calcasieu, Cameron, Jeff Davis, and portions of Vermilion and Acadia. A confirmed 18 people died in the storm and its aftermath. In addition, Intracoastal City saw a storm surge of . Storm surge also flooded over SH 317 at Burns Point in St. Mary Parish, and flash flooding surrounded homes in Abbeville.

Six weeks later, Delta made landfall near Creole, Louisiana, with winds of 100 mph. Virtually the same parishes were affected by Laura and Delta. Over 740,000 residents had no power following both storms.

Geography

Acadiana consists mainly of low gentle hills in the north section and dry land prairies, with marshes and bayous in the south closer to the Gulf Coast area. The wetlands increase in frequency in and around the Calcasieu River, Atchafalaya Basin, and the Mississippi River Delta. The area is cultivated with fields of rice and sugarcane.

Acadiana, as defined by the Louisiana legislature, refers to the area that stretches from just west of New Orleans