Editing Houma, Louisiana (section)

==Culture==
Houma and the surrounding communities are steeped in the French, Native, Cajun, African and Creole history of the region. Originally the region was colonized by [[France|French]] and [[Spain|Spanish]] who made their way south through [[Bayou Lafourche]]. In the late 18th century, numerous [[Acadians]] (later known as [[Cajuns]]) settled in the region. The Acadians had been expelled by the British from Nova Scotia during the Seven Years' War for their unwillingness to take a loyalty oath to the British King. The number expelled was about 15,000 in number, of which 3,000 eventually settled in this region. Others went to France. As the French, Spanish, Acadians and Native American people mixed over the decades, a unique Cajun culture was born.

The swampland around Houma resulted in the area being quite isolated from the rest of Louisiana and the United States well into the 1930. Outside influences such as radio and concomitant popular culture failed to penetrate Cajun culture, so Cajun culture and the use of French language in this region persevered much longer than in cities on the border of Cajun country, such as [[Lake Charles, Louisiana|Lake Charles]] or [[Baton Rouge, Louisiana|Baton Rouge]]. Traditional Cajun culture in Houma includes the French language, [[Cajun cuisine]], and celebration of Catholic festivals such as [[Mardi Gras]]. That folk culture remains evident today and attracts many tourists to the region.<ref>''The Cajuns'' by Shane K. Bernard</ref>

In the 1970s, many South Vietnamese refugees emigrated following the reunification of Vietnam. They settled in Southern Louisiana to work as shrimpers, just as they had in Vietnam. A fairly significant portion of them settled in New Orleans, and many settled in Houma as well, in addition to elsewhere along the Gulf Coast. Many ethnic Vietnamese families still work at shrimping, as their families have for several decades.<ref>''Good Scent from a Strange Mountain'' by [[Robert Olen Butler]]</ref>

Downtown Houma has been designated as an [[historic district]] and is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. It offers a downtown walking tour and attractions such as the Bayou Terrebonne Waterlife Museum, the Folklife Culture Center, the Regional Military Museum, Southdown Plantation, the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center, monuments to local armed forces, and local eateries.<ref>[https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g40223-Activities-Houma_Louisiana.html "Houma, Louisiana"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228000123/https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g40223-Activities-Houma_Louisiana.html |date=2017-02-28 }}, Trip Advisor</ref>

Although Houma is quickly changing, many residents in the surrounding communities continue to make their living from the Gulf as their ancestors did. They harvest [[shrimp]], [[oyster]], [[crab]], [[fish]], and engage in trapping, although more have shifted to work in occupations of the oil industry and shipbuilding. According to the United States Government Patent and Trademark Office, Houma, Louisiana was the site of the deepest oil well in Terrebonne Parish.{{citation needed|date=August 2014}}

[[Tab Benoit]]'s Voice of the Wetlands Music Festival, established in 2005, takes place in Houma, annually in October.<ref>[http://www.voiceofthewetlands.org/vow-festival/ Festival] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170225211655/http://www.voiceofthewetlands.org/vow-festival/ |date=2017-02-25 }}, Voice of the Wetlands website; accessed 25 February 2017</ref>