Talk like a New Orleanian | NewOrleans.com

New Orleans’ (see proper pronunciation below) unique culture comes with a language all its own. As a port city, New Orleans has served as a fertile home and gateway to the Americas, from the original Choctaw inhabitants of the region to the French, Spanish and African settlers that melded to create Creole culture and food. The cultures that comprise modern New Orleans have all brought their own language and colloquialisms to the table, and the city has shaped them to form new catch-phrases. From mistranslations to mispronunciations, learn to speak like a local!Banquette: Sidewalk or elevated pathway.Bayou: Choctaw for “small stream.” It’s a creek with a slow current that flows from a river or lowland lake, often through swamp areas and delta regions.Cajun: Nickname for Acadians, the French-speaking people who migrated to Western Louisiana from Novia Scotia starting in 1755.Cities of the Dead: New Orleans cemeteries. Because of the high water table, we spend the afterlife buried above g...