These Are the Original 12 Parishes of Louisiana
In Louisiana, we have our own code of law, our own language, our own music, and even our own unique way of dividing up the geography of our state.
The rest of the country can have their counties, we'll keep rolling with our parishes.
We have 64 parishes in Louisiana, but do you know what the very first ones were?
These Are the Original 12 Parishes of Louisiana
Louisiana was originally settled by the French in the early 18th century and later controlled by the Spanish before becoming a U.S. territory.
Both the French and Spanish had different administrative systems compared to the British colonies, which used "counties."
The French Catholic Church played a significant role in governance, and territories were divided based on religious boundaries known as paroisses (parishes). These boundaries often coincided with church jurisdictions.
When Louisiana was organized under French and Spanish rule, the word parish was used to describe these regions, reinforcing the influence of the church.
In 1803, Louisiana had 12 parishes as defined by the Territorial Legislative Council. In 1807, German Coast Parish was divided up into a few different ones and the number rose to 19.
Parishes are officially defined as "the political jurisdictions for recording land (conveyances), probate (successions), marriage, and court records in Louisiana".
Below are the original 12 parishes of Louisiana -
- Acadia Parish
- Attakapas Parish
- Concordia Parish
- German Coast Parish
- Iberville Parish
- Lafourche Parish
- Natchitoches Parish
- Opelousas Parish
- Orleans Parish
- Ouachita Parish
- Pointe Coupee Parish
- Rapides Parish
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