Cajun

American  

[key-juhn] / ˈkeɪ dʒən /

Sometimes Cajan

noun

1. a member of a group of people with an enduring cultural tradition whose French Catholic ancestors established permanent communities in Louisiana and Maine after being expelled from Acadia in the late 18th century.

2. the French dialect of the Cajuns.

---

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Cajuns, especially those of Louisiana.

   Cajun cooking.

Cajun British  

/ ˈkeɪdʒən /

noun

1. a native of Louisiana descended from 18th-century Acadian immigrants

2. the dialect of French spoken by such people

3. the music of this ethnic group, combining blues and European folk music

---

adjective

1. denoting, relating to, or characteristic of such people, their language, or their music

Cajun Cultural  

1. A native of Louisiana believed to be descended from the French exiles from Acadia (see Nova Scotia). Cajuns have maintained a separate culture, including a special dialect and distinctive cooking style.

---

Etymology

Origin of Cajun

First recorded in 1865–70; shortening of Acadian; compare Injun for Indian

Example Sentences

A successful merchant and middleman, Jacob married Marie Estelle Berthelot, a Catholic Cajun woman who later converted to Judaism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

Blumberg, who has made a number of solo albums and been part of several bands including Cajun Dance Party and Yuck, became friends with Corbet a decade ago.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 24, 2025

“We must be on the offensive with a wildly popular and populist economic agenda,” the country’s leading liberal Cajun writes.

From Slate • Jan. 3, 2025

“I’m like Uranium 238,” James Carville, the Ragin’ Cajun, once told me, “not quite stable.”

From Salon • May 30, 2024

“The Cajun opossum with wild rice is superb.”

From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George