The Acadians originated from the French colonial region of Acadia in what is now eastern Canada.
Acadia was one of the territories of New France. Its historical boundaries covered much of today’s Maritime region, including Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island, as well as parts of Quebec and present-day Maine. French settlers established communities there in the early 17th century, including Port-Royal in 1605.
The Acadians developed a distinct culture in the region, maintaining relationships with Indigenous peoples such as the Mi’kmaq and adapting to the coastal environment. Many reclaimed farmland from tidal areas around the Bay of Fundy by constructing dikes. Their history differed from that of French Canadians in the colony of Canada, centered largely on present-day Quebec.
During the 1750s and 1760s, British authorities expelled approximately 11,500 Acadians in an event known as the Great Upheaval or Great Expulsion. Some eventually settled in Louisiana, where their descendants became known as Cajuns. Louisiana is therefore a major destination in Acadian history, not the Canadian region of origin. New France was the larger colonial framework; Acadia was the specific region.