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Cajun

American  
[kay-juhn] / ˈkeɪ dʒən /
Sometimes Cajan

noun

  • Cajuns
    plural
  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

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

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

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms


Etymology

Origin of Cajun

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


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

My House Spice, which I use on pretty much everything, is my mother’s recipe, a Creole and Cajun spice blend with salt, pepper, granulated onion and garlic, cayenne and paprika.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026

Additional 2- and 4-ounce sides of Cajun barbecue chicken, jerk chicken and suya beef can be added for $2 and $4.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

He boasts of achieving a seventh-degree black belt in Keichu-do karate, a Cajun hodgepodge martial art developed by his biological father, Karl.

From Slate ● Jun. 29, 2026

Taylor then signed for another major label as frontman of a band called Cajun Moon.

From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2026

African-American traditions are so basic to popular music that they are generally not included in World music, but other North American traditions, such as Native American and Cajun traditions, sometimes are.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

But the Ragin’ Cajuns refused to go away — for the moment, at least.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026

The Ragin’ Cajuns went in averaging 38.8 points per game, but got only a 52-yard run by Jacob Kibodi for second-half points.

From Washington Times ● Sep. 30, 2023

The third inning saw two Ragin’ Cajuns reach base before third baseman SilentRain Espinoza made the defensive play of the game to keep the score tied at 0-0.

From Seattle Times ● May 27, 2023

Jordan Brown led the Ragin’ Cajuns with 16 points.

From Washington Times ● Mar. 17, 2023

I guess he knows more about Cajuns than anyone living, but I remembered with longing other gifts of Doctor St. Martin.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

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