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Louisiana Vacation Rental Cities New Orleans	Bedrooms: 4 Sleeps: 7 Bathrooms: 3 New Orleans - COTTAGE Penelope's is a stunning two story creole cottage. All rooms decorated with historic antiques. Our serene atmosphere overlooks the French Quarter and Historic Treme area. This Historic Dis click here for property details >>	Related Articles New Orleans

New Orleans, Louisiana Vacation Rental Houses and Condos.

New Orleans, Louisana vacation rentals by owner condo and house rentals and New Orleans has long seduced with its Caribbean colour, sultry Southern heat, sweet-tasting cocktails and voodoo potions. The unofficial state motto, laissez les bons temps rouler (let the good times roll), pretty much says it all. Called by some 'The City That Care Forgot,'  which refers to the outwardly easy-going, carefree nature of many of the residents,
New Orleans has a well-earned reputation for excess and debauchery. It's a cultural gumbo of African, Indian, Cajun and Creole influences.

New Orleans is named after Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, Regent of France, and is one of the oldest and most historic cities in the United States. The mystic of the city is an irrestible draw to vacationers and New Orleans, Louisana vacation rentals by owner condo and house rentals.

New Orleans is known for its multicultural heritage as well as its music and cuisine. It is considered the birthplace of jazz. Its status as a world-famous tourist destination for New Orleans, Louisana vacation rentals by owner condo and house rentals is due in part to its architecture and its annual Mardi Gras and other celebrations. It is often called the most unique city in America. Those seeking New Orleans, Louisana vacation rentals by owner condo and house rentals during Mardi Gras are advised to book and confirm reservations very early.

The city's several nicknames are illustrative. "Crescent City" alludes to the course of the Mississippi River around and through the city; "The Big Easy" was possibly a reference by musicians in the early 1900's to the relative ease of finding work there, but most New Orleanians attribute the term to the city being more carefree and slowed down than cities like New York (the Big Apple).

New Orleans is usually pronounced by locals as "noo-AW-lyenz," "noo-AW-linz," "noo-OR-linz," or "noo-OR-lyenz." The tendency among people around the world to say "noo-or-LEENZ" stems from the use of that pronunciation by singers and songwriters, who find it easy to rhyme; however that pronunciation is generally disdained by locals. The pronunciation "NAW-linz" is likewise not generally used nor liked by locals but has been popularized by the tourist trade.

The distinctive local accent is unlike either Cajun or the stereotypical Southern accent so often misportrayed by film and television actors. It does, like earlier Southern Englishes, feature frequent deletion of post-vocalic "r". It is similar to a New York "Brooklynese" accent to people unfamiliar with it. There are many theories to how the accent came to be, but it likely results from New Orleans' geographic isolation by water, and the fact that New Orleans was a major port of entry into the United States throughout the 19th century. Many of the immigrant groups who reside in Brooklyn also reside in New Orleans, with Irish, Italians, and Germans being among the largest groups.

The prestige associated with being from New Orleans by many residents is likely a factor in the linguistic assimilation of the ethnically divergent population. This distinctive accent is dying out generation by generation in the city (but remains very strong in the surrounding Parishes). As with many sociolinguistic artifacts, it is usually attested much more strongly by older members of the population. One subtype of the New Orleans accent is sometimes identified as Yat (from "Where y'at). This word is not used as a generalized term for the New Orleans accent, and is generally reserved for the strongest varieties. Also notable are lexical items specific to the city, such as "lagniappe" (pronounced LAN-yap) meaning "a little something extra," "makin' groceries" for grocery shopping, or "neutral ground" for a street median.

Source: Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia.