The New Iberia Spanish Festival: Celebrating the Rich Spanish Heritage of Louisiana
The Founding of New Iberia
In 1779, several families from Malaga, Spain immigrated to the region along the Bayou Teche in Louisiana and founded the city of New Iberia. Among the founding families were the López, Segura, Miguez, Viator, and Ortiz families, many of whose descendants still live in New Iberia today. The settlers named the new town “Nueva Iberia” in honor of their Spanish homeland.
Celebrating Spanish Culture and Heritage
Each year, the city of New Iberia hosts the annual New Iberia Spanish Festival to celebrate its rich Spanish heritage and culture. The festival features a variety of events and activities, including:
- Spanish Festival Queens’ Pageant
- Presentation and exhibit of Spanish painters
- Spanish gala
- Running of the Bulls 5K/1 mile Fun Run
- Re-enactment of the arrival of the Spanish settlers
- Paella cooking contest
- Historic cemetery tours
The festival aims to create awareness of the many contributions the Spanish have made to the history and culture of New Iberia. “A lot of you think of French but you don’t realize that it’s a lot of Spanish, that is where it was founded by the Spanish so it’s very important to make a connection, dig deep,” says the President of the New Iberia Spanish Festival.
to come.
Website: http://www.newiberiaspanishfestival.com/
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