The Cajuns are descendants of French-speaking settlers who were expelled from Acadia (now Nova Scotia, Canada) in the mid-1700s during a British expulsion known as Le Grand Dérangement. Many of these displaced people migrated south and eventually settled in southern Louisiana, where they built new lives in the swamps, prairies, and bayous. Over time, their French language, Catholic faith, and rural traditions blended with Native American, African, and Spanish influences to form a unique culture