There goes the neighborhood

When 2 cultures come together , their different traditions, language, and sometimes religion can clash. This is because of ethnocentrism, which is the belief that one’s culture is superior to every other culture.

In the case of the European settlers, they thought that their way of life was so much better than the Native American’s way of life, that they tried to force their culture upon the Native Americans. When the Natives Americans refused the European culture, they were thought of as savages. Due to the fact that in the European’s eyes, the Native Americans had less advanced technology. The French-Indian war started mostly because of the difference in culture.

However, sometimes when 2 cultures come together, an entirely new culture or language can form. For example, many Americans now speak Spanglish, which can be considered a completely new language. Also, in New Orleans,the French settlers and their African American slaves settled in the 1700’s, for the most part, the 2 cultures were separated. When the slaves were freed after the Civil War, the 2 cultures had less separation and eventually created the culture which we now know as Creole culture. The 2 cultures are also still alive and well in Africa and France.

There are many different outcomes, positive and negative that can occur when 2 cultures combine. It depends on how open minded the 2 groups of people are to new traditions.