A. Between 1790 and 1804, at the time when its population numbered 20,673 slaves and 18,737 free persons (whites and freed slaves), about 9,000 refugees from Saint-Domingue accompanied by their slaves landed in colonial Louisiana (Hall 1992).

This has led some to assume a strong influence of Saint-Domingue Creole on Louisiana Creole. But there existed in Louisiana a slave population going back to 1710, and it is highly probable that a local French-based Creole developed between that date and the massive influx of speakers of Saint-Domingue Creole.

    B. The earliest form or French-based Creole originated in the central Caribbean island of Saint-Kitts where, in 1627, the French established their first settlement.

This French-based Creole was exported first to Guadeloupe and Martinique, and then, perhaps from secondary disseminating points, to Saint-Domingue.

Finally, it was introduced in the later-established French colonies of Cayenne, Louisiana, and the Indian Ocean islands.

French New Orleans

New Orleans "Creole French Quarters"

C. Although language and culture are closely linked, the relationship is not direct. While many aspects of Louisiana culture such as music, folklore and food have their roots in the salves' native cultures,

there is little evidence that the grammar of the new language that developed in colonial French Louisiana was shaped by the languages they spoke.......I'm not so sure about this

But this is not to deny any African influence on Louisiana Creole.

    D. "Creole is a language whose body is French but whose soul is African." The mistake many linguists have made is to equate the soul of a language with its grammar.

Gwendolyn M. Hall comes closer to the truth when she points out that members of the Louisiana Creole community, which includes whites as well as blacks, share speech rhythms and intonation and ways of using language, including, for example, the use of proverbs.

The Origin of "Louisiana Creole Language"