With the power of modern advertising, when one thinks of south Louisiana, images of the French speaking Cajuns come to mind. Less obvious are the Celtic roots of these Acadian families. Many of the original Acadians came from the Celtic regions of France, including Brittany and northern Poitou. They kept their culture and wove it into the fabric that became Cajun society. You can hear their jigs and reels in the Cajun two step and in the myths and legends that stretch back in time to echo their Celtic origins.

At least two Acadian families that resettled in Louisiana have non-Breton Celtic roots. The Roger family is Irish; they descend from Roger Casey, a young Irish sailor who jumped ship and sought refuge in Acadia in the 1670s. The Jeansonne family is Scottish. The first to settle in the New World was Guillaume Jeanson; also known as William Johnson. A 6 foot 6 inch flaming redheaded blue-eyed Scotsman, he was part of the English Army that captured Port Royal. He stayed and married an Acadian girl. Their children were considered Acadians even though Guilliam died while an officer in the service of the English garrison.

There were Irishmen in the region even before the Acadians settled. Many served under the Spanish flag after the Flight of the Earls and some followed it to the New World, where they stayed. The second Spanish Governor of New Orleans was actually an Irishman named Alexander O'Reilly. It was Governor O'Reilly who allowed the three separate Acadian colonies of Louisiana to intermix as one group. During the colonial period, Spain brought in Irish priests to administer to her growing population of English speaking Catholics.