Louisiana French

The Dictionary of Louisiana French has arrived!

2009-12-12T09:52:00.004-06:00

The Dictionary of Louisiana French has arrived! Be sure go buy yourself a few copies! I contacted the publisher who told me that they only printed about 2,000 of them and this item seems to be selling fast, so get it while it's here! They make great Christmas presents!

Louisiana French is back after a short pause, so expect to see more educational language posts in the future!

What's the deal with "elles"?

2009-08-10T08:21:00.004-05:00

Here's the thing, we just don't use it. Plain and simple. Sure, your high school French book likes to boast about using "elles" but let's face it, we don't live in a high school French book. Even in spoken Canadian French, "elles" isn't used. Canadians tend to opt for "ils".

So, how do you talk about a group of females in Louisiana French? It's easy, just use one of the many 3rd person plural subject pronouns: ils, eusse, eux-autres, ça.

Tu vois ces filles-là? Ils parlont de trop.
You see those girls? They talk too much.

Tu vois ces filles-là? Eusse parle de trop.
See those girls? They talk too much.

Tu vois ces filles-là? Eux-autres parle de trop.
See those girls? They talk too much.

Tu vois ces filles-là? Ça parle de trop.
See those girls? They talk too much.

Some speakers may use all of these subject pronouns in a given conversation, while other speakers may use only one. It's always best to consult a family or community member who speaks French in order to determine local Louisiana French usage.

Louisiana French Activist of the Month: Barry Ancelet

2009-07-28T17:06:00.007-05:00

Louisiana French Activist of the Month: Barry Ancelet!

Barry Ancelet is the author of many books about French Louisiana including:

Cajun Country, Cajun and Creole Music Makers: Musiciens Cadiens Et Créoles, Cajun and Creole Folktales: The French Oral Tradition of South Louisiana, Cajun Music: Its Origins and Development, The Makers of Cajun Music/Musiciens Cadiens Et Creoles and Capitaine, Voyage Ton Flag: The Traditional Cajun Country Mardi Gras!

Basically, if the book has the word "Cajun" in it, he's probably written it! We won't try to re-hash a biography about him; that's what Google's for. So, just buy his books, enjoy them and keep on living that Louisiana French!

To honor Barry Ancelet (and his iconic moustache), we've created this fun game!

TomTom GPS is available in Louisiana French!

2009-07-28T07:21:00.001-05:00

TomTom GPS is now available in Louisiana French!

You read that right! The TomTom GPS system is now available in Louisiana French with a Louisiana French accent to boot! Rocky McKeon, the owner and creator of Télévision Terrebonne-LaFourche and Le Tabloid Cadien! presents to you a voice that everyone can enjoy! Just install this Louisiana French voice on your TomTom and you'll be able to hear such things as "Biaisez à droite" and "Quittez le Interstate à l'exit à la droite." No more snooty French woman speaking in a foreign tongue, no more French man trying to tell you where to go as if you're in Paris. This is a Louisiana voice speaking Louisiana French the way your family likes to do.

To install the voice:

1. Download and unzip the file: http://www.tabloidcadien.com/tomtom.zip
2. Connect your TomTom to your computer.
3. Go to My Computer and click on the TomTom icon to open it.
4. Find the folder on your TomTom called "voices" or something similar.
5. Copy the .vif and the .chk files to the "voices" folder.
6. Disconnect your TomTom from the computer.
7. Change your TomTom voice to Special 11.

There you have it!

TomTom GPS in Louisiana French in 7 easy steps!

to think, to wonder, to wish, to hope, to wait, to expect, to hear

2009-07-27T07:55:00.003-05:00

to think
penser (à)
jongler (à quèque chose) (de faire quelque chose)

The word penser simply means "to think" whereas the word jongler means "to think intently".

I think you're right.
Je pense (que) t'as raison.

I'm thinking about my sweetheart.
J'après penser à ma belle.
J'après jongler à ma belle.

I'm thinking about going to the store.
J'après penser d'aller au magasin.
J'après jongler d'aller au magasin.

to wonder
jongler

I'm wondering if I should go.
J'après jongler si j'devrais aller.

to wish
souhaiter

I wish you'd go to the store.
J'souhaite que tu vas au magasin.

I wish I didn't have to wait.
J'souhaite j'aurais pas pour espérer.

to hope
souhaiter
avoir (de) l'espoir (de/que)

I hope it doesn't rain.
J'souhaite qu'il mouille pas.
J'ai (de) l'espoir qu'il mouille pas.

I hope you'll understand.
J'souhaite que tu vas comprendre.
J'ai (de) l'espoir que tu vas comprendre.

I hope to watch TV.
Je souhaite guetter le television.
J'ai (de) l'espoir de guetter le television.

I hope to go to the store today.
Je souhaite aller au magasin aujourd'hui.
J'ai (de) l'espoir d'aller au magasin aujourd'hui.

to wait
espérer (pour quèqu'une/quèque chose)

The kids are waiting for the bus.
Les enfants (est/sont) après espérer pour le bus.

My cousin is waiting to get married.
Ma cousine (est) après espérer pour se marier.

to expect
espérer

I expect it to rain today.
J'espère qu'il va mouiller aujourd'hui.

I expect company tomorrow.
J'espère de la compagnie demain.

to hear
attendre

I hear the bird.
J'attend le zoiseau

I hear the car.
J'attend le char.

Dictionary of Louisiana French: As Spoken by Cajun, Creole and Native American Communities!

2009-07-26T13:52:00.000-05:00

The Dictionary of Louisiana French: As Spoken by Cajun, Creole and Native American Communities is now available for pre-order! It will be published in November and it will be available for purchase in December! The DLF will also be available in CD-ROM format!

Here are screen shots of the Dictionary of Louisiana French CD-ROM with the French interface in action!

You can pre-order your copy at the following online bookstores:

http://www.amazon.com

http://www.amazon.ca

http://www.booksamillion.com

Common Misconceptions Disspelled!

2009-07-25T19:26:00.000-05:00

Isn't Louisiana French just Cajun French?
No, it's not. In fact, Louisiana French has very little Acadian French influence and to suggest that Louisiana French is Cajun French is to suggest that everyone who speaks French in Louisiana is descended from the Acadians. The Acadians were a minority when they arrived in French Louisiana and to think that everyone suddenly started speaking like them is specious.

Isn't Louisiana French just a mix of English and French?
No, it's not. Louisiana French has a rich vocabulary that allows its speakers to express modern ideas without having to revert to English vocabulary. The use of English in Louisiana French comes from modern inventions which haven't been given a French word in a Louisiana context. So, sure, you'll have a few vocabulary words that have been borrowed from English, but these English words make up a small percentage of the Louisiana French lexicon.

Isn't Louisiana French just bad French?
No, it's not. One could argue that French is just bad Latin. The idea of Louisiana French being "bad" French comes from the false belief that so-called "standard" French is "good" French. Just because "standard" French is the standard elsewhere doesn't necessarily mean that it should be the standard here. For example, the Québec standard isn't the France standard and the France standard isn't the Swiss standard. However, you'd never hear people say that Swiss French speakers speak "bad" French simply because it's not the French that's spoken in France. "Good French" is good if it allows people to communicate with the rest of the world, which Louisiana French speakers have no problem doing at all.

French Louisiana

2009-07-25T09:59:00.000-05:00

This blog was created to present lessons about colloquial French speech in Louisiana, to disspell myths about French Louisiana and the French language of its people and to explore similarities that Louisiana French has with other varieties of American French.

French is currently spoken in 27 parishes of Louisiana. These 27 parishes make up the region known as Acadiana.

Louisiana law states:

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Legislature of Louisiana, the Senate thereof concurring that the Legislature of Louisiana designate the cultural region known as The Heart of Acadiana within the state of Louisiana consisting of, but not exclusively, the following parishes: Acadia, Avoyelles, Ascension, Assumption, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Lafourche, Pointe Coupée, St. Charles, St. James, St. John, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, Terrebonne, Vermilion, West Baton Rouge, and other parishes of similar cultural environment.

Therefore, since these other parishes outside of the 22 named parishes also have a French-speaking population, and by extension a similar cultural environment of French-speaking culture, they are also considered to be part of (The Heart of) Acadiana.

This region includes native Louisiana French speakers from many walks of life whether they be Cajun, Creole or American Indian. This region also includes an increasing number of heritage French speakers who have realized the importance of French in Louisiana and have dedicated themselves to learning to speak French like their French-speaking families.

Please enjoy your visit and if you have questions about words, lesson suggestions or just plain old comments, please don't hesitate to send me a message or make a comment. Your questions and suggestions just might be made into a blog post!