Brayon

Brayon is a term for French-speaking residents in the region around the city of Edmundston in New Brunswick, Canada. The feminine form is called Brayonne and both terms are also used as adjectives. The origin of the name is disputed. He probably comes from the French term for flax ( braye ), which cut the ancestors of the Saint John River for the production of baskets and mutatis mutandis means flat- breaker.

Many Brayon fight against it, to be compared with the inhabitants of Acadia, or Quebec, but declare themselves as independent Brayon Petit Sault ( Small waterfall ), the original name of Edmundston. They consider themselves as francophone residents of Quebec or Acadia with particular cultures and backgrounds. Their roots are in the rural and forestry of the region of Madawaska, the historically and culturally different from the maritime Acadia, the valley of the St. Lawrence River or the Province of Québec.

This awareness led to the idea of ​​founding the Republic of Madawaska. The Aroostook War (1838 /39) were outraged many Brayon about the actions of the British and American invaders in their country and declared themselves neutral and independent. The Republic of Madawaska was never formally recognized and cleaved in the Webster - Ashburton 1842 Treaty as a Canadian and a U.S. part. However, the planned Republic of Madawaska remained unforgotten in the Brayon and 1938 its own flag was designed that blows outside the town hall in Edmundston. The Mayor of Edmundston was given the additional title of president of Madawaska and a small museum of the Republic is the history of Brayon dedicated. Every year in summer the Foire Brayonne, a traditional music and culture festival, celebrated in Edmundston.