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CultureQuiet 14d · day 15

Oldest Recording of Louisiana Creole Language Published

A 1935 recording rediscovered and released sheds light on the vanishing language tied to slavery and colonialism.

newest coverage 14d agosummary written 12d ago8 pieces21 likes & upvotes1 comments MastodonNewswires

What to know

  • The New York Times published the oldest known recording of Louisiana Creole on October 30, 2026—a 1935 audio document that had been forgotten for decades.
  • The recording provides linguistic evidence of a language shaped by slavery and French colonialism in Louisiana history.
  • Louisiana Creole is now vanishing, making this historical audio an important cultural and linguistic archive.

The dispute Whether the 1935 recording captures Louisiana Creole or French with a Louisiana accent. · positions read across 2 posts and comments

most voices

This is a valuable historical and cultural document worth celebrating and studying.

  • “This is super cool! The oldest known recording of spoken Louisiana Creole has been published.”

    jasonisaacdrums · Mastodon ↗
some voices

The speaker was actually using French, not Louisiana Creole.

  • “French. She was speaking French with a Louisiana accent.”

    RealGene · Mastodon ↗

“The rediscovery of a forgotten recording from 1935 sheds light on a language rooted in the state's history of slavery and French colonialism.”

New York Times · New York Times ↗ · Oct 29

Lorenzo Dow Turner Linguist who recorded Louisiana CreoleNew York Times Publisher

How it unfolded 1 development · click the chart to see its coverage articlesposts

Peak 3 pieces in 4h at Oct 30, 12 AM; 8 pieces over 15 days (2 articles · 6 posts) Oct 30, 12 AM — 3 pieces · 2 articles · 1 post — Mastodon 2, Newswires 1Oct 30, 4 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Oct 30, 8 AM — 2 pieces · 2 posts — Mastodon 2Oct 30, 12 PM — quietOct 30, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Oct 30, 8 PM — quietOct 31, 12 AM — quietOct 31, 4 AM — quietOct 31, 8 AM — quietOct 31, 12 PM — quietOct 31, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Oct 31, 8 PM — quietNov 1, 12 AM — quietNov 1, 3 AM — quietNov 1, 7 AM — quietNov 1, 11 AM — quietNov 1, 3 PM — quietNov 1, 7 PM — quietNov 1, 11 PM — quietNov 2, 3 AM — quietNov 2, 7 AM — quietNov 2, 11 AM — quietNov 2, 3 PM — quietNov 2, 7 PM — quietNov 2, 11 PM — quietNov 3, 3 AM — quietNov 3, 7 AM — quietNov 3, 11 AM — quietNov 3, 3 PM — quietNov 3, 7 PM — quietNov 3, 11 PM — quietNov 4, 3 AM — quietNov 4, 7 AM — quietNov 4, 11 AM — quietNov 4, 3 PM — quietNov 4, 7 PM — quietNov 4, 11 PM — quietNov 5, 3 AM — quietNov 5, 7 AM — quietNov 5, 11 AM — quietNov 5, 3 PM — quietNov 5, 7 PM — quietNov 5, 11 PM — quietNov 6, 3 AM — quietNov 6, 7 AM — quietNov 6, 11 AM — quietNov 6, 3 PM — quietNov 6, 7 PM — quietNov 6, 11 PM — quietNov 7, 3 AM — quietNov 7, 7 AM — quietNov 7, 11 AM — quietNov 7, 3 PM — quietNov 7, 7 PM — quietNov 7, 11 PM — quietNov 8, 3 AM — quietNov 8, 7 AM — quietNov 8, 11 AM — quietNov 8, 3 PM — quietNov 8, 7 PM — quietNov 8, 11 PM — quietNov 9, 3 AM — quietNov 9, 7 AM — quietNov 9, 11 AM — quietNov 9, 3 PM — quietNov 9, 7 PM — quietNov 9, 11 PM — quietNov 10, 3 AM — quietNov 10, 7 AM — quietNov 10, 11 AM — quietNov 10, 3 PM — quietNov 10, 7 PM — quietNov 10, 11 PM — quietNov 11, 3 AM — quietNov 11, 7 AM — quietNov 11, 11 AM — quietNov 11, 3 PM — quietNov 11, 7 PM — quietNov 11, 11 PM — quietNov 12, 3 AM — quietNov 12, 7 AM — quietNov 12, 11 AM — quietNov 12, 3 PM — quietNov 12, 7 PM — quietNov 12, 11 PM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 7 AM — quietYesterday, 11 AM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 7 PM — quietYesterday, 11 PM — quiet 1
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  1. 1

    New York Times publishes 1935 Louisiana Creole recording

    The New York Times rediscovered and published the 91-year-old recording on October 30, 2026, bringing attention to the vanishing language and its historical roots in slavery and French colonialism.

    1. 2 outlets Oldest Recording of Louisiana’s Vanishing Creole Language Is Published

      first by Mastodon, 15d ago · also NYT

    • jasonisaacdrums@heads.social

      This is super cool! The oldest known recording of spoken Louisiana Creole has been published. https://www. nytimes.com/2026/10/30/us/loui siana-creole-recording-lorenzo-dow-turner.html?unlocked_article_code=1.M1E.SQdg.tsoEtq47jPKA&smid=url-share

      jasonisaacdrums@heads.socialMastodon13d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch

    • French. She was speaking French with a Louisiana accent. https://www. nytimes.com/2026/10/30/us/loui siana-creole-recording-lorenzo-dow-turner.html

      RealGene@hachyderm.ioMastodon14d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  2. background

    Lorenzo Dow Turner records Louisiana Creole speaker — A recording capturing Louisiana Creole speech was made in 1935, becoming the oldest known audio document of the language.

What people are saying 0 voices from 0 sites · best of 2 · verbatim