The Great Acadian Awakening : A Reaffirmation of Acadian Presence in Louisiana

In October 2015, the second Great Acadian Awakening (Grand réveil acadien : Gra) took place in multiple locations throughout south Louisiana, commemorating the 250^th anniversary of the Acadians’ arrival in the Attakapas territory of Louisiana in 1765. This article gives an account of the Gra’s origins and the activities that took place there, including music, theatre, and genealogy workshops, as well as their evolution since the first edition of the event in 2011. Examining the Gra through the lens of collective memory, it appears as a sign of increased contact between Louisiana and the rest of the francophone world, particularly francophone Canada. Although the Gra may indicate renewed interest in promoting French in Louisiana, the benefit to the French language in the region would rely on negotiating between celebrating an exclusively Acadian identity and including the region’s other francophone groups in the culturally and ethnically diverse context of French and Creole Louisiana.