Defining Terms
Culture can be considered as something that is done, not had, by people through customs, use of gestures, food, where they choose to live, and even specific designs in clothes, jewelry, and house structures.[i] These actions of meanings are mediated concepts that are determined socially, historically, and politically. Music, an expression of culture, is an art form that is distinguished by the use of certain sounds between different cultures.[ii] Music is something which should be seen as a pastime for leisure or a product that exhibits a culture’s expression of their people.
CAJUN
Ca·jun /ˈkājən/
The word is thought to have derived from Cajun/cajen/cadien which was an abbreviation of the English language that was trying to mimic the French word acadien[iii].
“But what is a Cajun?"
Depending on who is answering, some will tell you they are "Acadians," the descendants of those forced into exile from Acadia (today’s Nova Scotia) or while others will say anyone that lives a "Cajun lifestyle" in the area of Acadiana is a Cajun.[iv] Cajuns are not Acadians—they did not live in Acadia—they are Americans or Louisianians. Cajun is a practiced culture that continues to be expressed by people sometimes with ties to the Acadians and sometimes by those that are beyond the twenty-two parishes of Acadiana.
CREOLE
Cre·ole /ˈkrēˌōl/
Originally this word referred to the first generation in the New World. In Louisiana it has changed over time as well and is now a culture instead of a birthright. Historically (and presently) French Creoles are those that have French family background and typically had roots in Louisiana before its statehood, as the Black Creoles, today now called Afro-Creoles, are those that have French, African, or Caribbean heritage—or all three—that also had roots in Louisiana before statehood.[v]