Coonass, orCoon-ass, is a term for a person ofCajun ethnicity. Some view it as derogatory; however, many Cajuns embrace the name.
Socioeconomic factors appear to influence how Cajuns are likely to view the term, with the acceptance and use of term being an example ofcovert prestige: some working-class Cajuns may regard the word "coonass" as a badge of ethnic pride, whereas it may be frowned upon by some middle- and upper-class Cajuns who may be more likely to regard the term as insulting or degrading, even when used by fellow Cajuns in reference to themselves.[1]: 138 Despite an effort by Cajun activists to stamp out the term, it can be found on T-shirts, hats, and bumper stickers throughoutAcadiana, the 22-parish Cajun homeland in southLouisiana.[1]: 138 The term is also used by some of Cajun descent in nearbyEast Texas andMississippi.
The origins of "coonass" are obscure, and Cajuns have put forth severalfolk etymologies in an effort to explain the word's origin. Some of these hold that the word refers to the Cajuns' occasional habit of eatingraccoons, or from the use ofcoonskin caps by the Cajuns' ancestors while fighting in theBattle of New Orleans or in theRevolutionary War under Spanish colonial GovernorBernardo de Gálvez. Another folk etymology attributes the term to the racial slur "coon," used in reference toAfrican-Americans — Another holds that the term derives from the shape of a woman after having children (like a raccoon viewed from above).[1]: 96–97 Yet another folk etymology maintains that "coonass" is a corruption of the French and Latin wordcunnus, a vulgar term for "vulva".
The most popular folk etymology, however, stems from late Louisiana congressman and cultural activistJames "Jimmy" Domengeaux, who maintained that "coonass" derived from the continental French wordconnasse.[2] According to theFrench Wiktionary, the FrenchLarousse dictionary, and theFrench Wikipedia,connasse entered the French language at the beginning of the 19th century and the term translates loosely to "dirty prostitute". Domengeaux asserted that Frenchmen used the term in reference to Cajun soldiers serving in France duringWorld War II, and that Anglo-American soldiers overheard the term, transformed it into "coonass" and brought it back to the US as a disparaging term for Cajuns. Citing Domengeaux's etymology, Louisiana legislators passed aconcurrent resolution in the 1980s condemning the word. Contrary to popular belief, the lawmakers did not ban the term.[1]: 96–97 Research has since disproved Domengeaux'sconnasse etymology. Indeed, photographic evidence shows that Cajuns themselves used the term prior to the time in whichconnasse allegedly morphed into "coonass".[1]: 97