- -eaux
-eaux is a common ending for historically
Cajun surnames like Babineaux, Boudreaux, Breaux, Marceaux and Thibodeaux. Despite its somewhat confusing appearance, this combination of letters is pronounced with a long "O" sound.pelling origin
Although there is debate about the exact emergence of this spelling in the United States, it has been claimed that this spelling originated from English illiterate people having to make an "x" mark at the end of their printed name in order to sign a legal document. Since many Cajun names of French origin already ended in "-eau," the names' endings eventually became standardized as "-eaux." Note however that in French, "-eaux" is the plural form of nouns ending in "-eau".
This claim has been disputed by
Carl Brasseaux , who insists that the "-eaux" ending was one of many possible ways to standardize Cajun surnames ending in an "O" sound. Brasseaux claims that Judge Paul Briant is most responsible for the "-eaux" ending during his oversight of the 1820 U.S. Census in Louisiana and that the "x" ending is completely arbitrary. [http://www.acadian-cajun.com/cmanew5e.htm]Modern usage
The "eaux" ending is also light-heartedly used among residents of south
Louisiana as a marker of their Cajun heritage, particularly at sporting events forLouisiana State University and theUniversity of Louisiana at Lafayette on signs like "Geaux Tigers" or "Geaux Cajuns." There are still many names that end in -eau (the standard French spelling) especially with names that start with "C" as in Cousineau, a common Cajun surname.Steve-O 's new line of shoes, labeled "Sneaux Shoes", are also pronEng|ˈsnoʊʃuːz (snow shoes).References
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